In Togo, the National Union of Hospital Practitioners (Synphot) expresses outrage following the discovery of an illicit drug sales network at Kara University Hospital (CHU) in the northeast of the country.
This case has been making waves in the Togolese healthcare sector for several days, with illicit drug sales taking place among healthcare professionals at Kara University Hospital (CHU) in the northeast.
The issue, exposed by a patient rights advocacy group, is vehemently condemned by the National Union of Hospital Practitioners of Togo (Synphot). Synphot is urging authorities to initiate comprehensive reforms within the public healthcare system.
The President of the Africa Health Promotion Observatory, Ricardo Aklèsso Agouzou, explains that the case came to light after a patient, who was admitted to Kara CHU after a snakebite, was prescribed medication.
However, the healthcare staff repeatedly offered them a product for 70,000 CFA francs, which was not from the hospital’s pharmacy. It was discovered that an underground network was illicitly selling medications, prompting the observatory to alert the Minister of Health.
Such practices, contrary to medical ethics, are denounced by Synphot. Dr. Gilbert Tsolenyanu, the Secretary-General of Synphot, asserts that this case is not isolated and reveals the shortcomings within the Togolese healthcare system. He emphasizes the need to understand how medications are entering the country through clandestine networks and being used in public hospitals. Additionally, he notes that the shortage of antivenom serum is recurrent and chronic.
Synphot calls on the authorities to address these problems, including underground sales networks and medication shortages, and urges a comprehensive overhaul of the Togolese healthcare system. The individuals involved in the Kara CHU case have been dismissed from their positions.