Pharmaceutical society makes key demands on government

The Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana has made a passionate appeal to the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to as a matter of urgency, constitute the board for the Ghana College of Pharmacists, an institution established by law to train postgraduate pharmacists in the country.

They also requested of the President to see to the implementation of the condition of service for Government Hospital Pharmacists in the country.

The appeal was made by executives of the society when they called on the President at the Jubilee House in Accra yesterday.

Vice-President of the society, Yvonne Esseku explained that although government has taken the initial steps to get the condition of service for the Government Hospital Pharmacists signed, those conditions have not yet been implemented.

The society used the occasion to invite the President to serve as a special guest for the its Annual General Meeting (AGM), slated for July 31 to August 4, 2018, to be held in the Volta Regional capital, Ho, under the theme ‘Building Capacity to Lead Change in Healthcare’.

Mr Thomas Boateng Appiahgyei, who spoke on behalf of the group, said: “As a profession, we recognise that healthcare as we have it now will, and should, be different, better and more efficient and accessible in the coming years.”

He said the society intends to use the AGM to start the process of building the necessary capacities and leadership mindset that would enable the industry better deliver a world-class healthcare service to the people of Ghana.

The society has also decided to confer on the President, the honorary fellowship award – the highest award of the society for non-pharmacists – at the AGM.

The award, according to the society, is in recognition of the immense contribution of the President towards the growth and development of the pharmaceutical industry; notably, the exemption of imported finished pharmaceutical products not locally produced from Valued Added Tax, as well as efforts at sustaining the National Health Insurance Scheme.

“This has contributed to a reduction in the cost of medicines in Ghana.”

The President, in response, thanked the society for its contribution towards the development of the country.

He acknowledged the critical importance of the pharmaceutical sector and its impact on heath delivery and the economy of the country as a whole, and said his government would support the industry to grow and expand beyond Ghana.

“We believe that there are major opportunities for a well-motivated pharmaceutical sector in Ghana to go out there and conquer the world.”

On the issue of a board for the Ghana College of Pharmacists and the conditions of service for Government Hospital Pharmacists, the President assured the society that his government would treat them as urgent matters.