Ghana Loses 24 Pharmacists in Three Months

The West African country has lost 24 of her scarce pharmacists to the United States and Britain between January and March this year. Available statistics indicate that the 50 pharmacists left the shores of Ghana in a period of three years - 1997-2000.

It is feared that if the current trend continues, the country may lose about 100-trained pharmacists by the end of this year, a situation that threatens the health delivery system in the country.

The situation calls for urgent measures from the government in order to create the congenial environment to attract pharmacists to stay in the country the Registrar of the Pharmacy Council, M.K. Awuku-Kwatia told an induction ceremony to welcome newly qualified pharmacists into the Council in the capital, Accra.

Last year alone, as many as 28 pharmacists left the country to the US and Britain where immigration laws have been made flexible for medical practitioners entering there.

Awuku-Kwatia appealed to the 89 newly inducted pharmacists, six of whom have already made clear their intentions of directing their services elsewhere, to sacrifice and stay to assist in meeting the health needs of the people of Ghana.

The Minister for Health, Dr. Richard Anane pledged that incentives aimed at creating an enabling environment for improved service delivery would be pursued.

Dr. Anane described the distribution of the pharmaceutical services in favor of the urban population to the detriment of the areas as unacceptable and said "this cannot be left to continue".

He recalled that in 1999, while Greater Accra alone had 619 community pharmacies, the whole of Northern Region, Upper West and East Regions had only 13 of such facilities.

The Health Minister said that there has been some proposals on incentives for pharmacists to operate in deprived areas and pledged to consider them as soon as practicable.