The Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (KEMSA) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Terry Ramadhani has challenged Makueni County Government to set up a pharmaceutical industry as apart their growth plan.
Consequently, Ramadhani said that at KEMSA they are looking at diversifying to contract local manufacturing enterprises that will produce pharmaceutical products, hence enjoy home advantage.
“It is well known that Makueni County has been developing a number of economic empowering industries. On this front, let me challenge your governor to set up a pharmaceutical industry,” said the CEO at Makueni referral Hospital Monday, when they flagged off supplies estimated at Sh101 million to health facilities in the county.
The flagging of the drugs to the 240 rural health facilities and 13 hospitals in the county, was done jointly with the Makueni Governor Mutula Kilonzo (Jnr). The drugs distributed included Oncology, Renal, Antibiotics, Anti-hypertensive drugs and Nutritional Supplements among others.
Ramadhani further disclosed that her organization is committed to ensuring proper stocking of health products and technologies (HPTs) at the Makueni County Referral hospital and make delivery of health commodities to other facilities spread across the 9 sub counties.
She reiterated that KEMSA will support the health promotion agenda at county levels, noting that it was a three-pronged transformation strategy, dubbed the KEMSA 2.0 strategy that the authority has formulated to enhance customer experience standards in all counties focusing on performance indicators.
“At KEMSA, we are executing the rapid results strategy to raise operating efficiencies and customer satisfaction. This strategy focuses on building momentum for organizational productivity to guarantee efficient last mile delivery of health commodities countrywide,” she said.
At the same time, the CEO said that they are working tirelessly to ensure all county governments receive quality, consistent services from KEMSA.
“County governments can be described as KEMSA’s priority or prestige clients and we are sparing no effort to ensure that we meet their last-mile medical supplies needs as best as we can,” Ramadhani said.
On his part, the governor warned medical staff that they risked being sacked if found stealing the drugs meant for patients at the health facilities in the county.
In this regard, Kilonzo (Jnr) reminded the medics that the drugs are going to save lives, especially of those who do not have money and are suffering from various diseases.
“That is why I am pleading with you medics in our health facilities not to play around with these health commodities. You are the only ones dealing with life and death, there should be no games. I sat with KEMSA team who told me that some of our drugs disappear through theft in our hospitals. This is not a good report from the management. You must look at your oath again which does not say you sell these commodities to be rich, one of us must leave and that is you,” he warned.
Eight lorries were flagged off carrying assorted drugs to the 240 health facilities and 13 hospitals in the county.
