I can't agree with you more on this issue.Certainly Dr. Jallow should have known better than the unprofessional declaration she made about the probable consequences of what anyone could expect from taking an expired drug.I do not think it is realistic to conclude that just because there were no side effects the drugs are safe. When are you going to realize the danger of this practice?Is it when people start dying or when they start having very serious sicknesses.
Perhaps since this issue has come to public attention there will be measures to remedy this practice.What needs to be done is some changes in their modus operandi including proper inventory practices and proper statistical records of the time of the year a specific ailment is prevalent.I believe that even if that do not prevent shortages it will atleast lessen the time of using outdated drugs.
Long Live the Gambia.
Mori Kebba Jammeh  
----- Original Message ----- 
From: astrid christensen-tasong 
To: [log in to unmask] 
Sent: Tuesday, November 09, 1999 8:57 AM
Subject: Article from the Observer: Expired Drugs


                  This is unbelievable...Am I missing something or is this pharmacist out of her mind telling people expired drugs are ok to use and will continue dispensing THE EXPIRED DRUGS.  I'm sure they taught her in school the purpose of the expiration date? 


      From the Daily Observer  11/9/99 

      Clinic gives patients expired drugs 
      Chief pharmacist says drugs safe 

      The Serrekunda Health Centre and other clinics across the country have been dispensing expired drugs to patients suffering from diarrhoea since January 4, 1999, investigations by Daily Observer revealed yesterday. 

      The drug, oral rehydration salts, were manufactured on January 4, 1996 and declared expired on January 4, 1999. The salts were manufactured for the World Health Organisation (WHO).  One patient who was given the expired drug by nurses at Serrekunda clinic was Jali Madi 
      Kanuteh of Latrikunda Yiranganya. "After drinking the drug, I realised that it was expired.  I showed it to other people who were at my compound playing checkers," he said. 

      Mr Kanuteh argued that since the labelled expiry date for the drug had expired, health workers should not dispense them to patients. A Ghanaian teacher expressed concern over the issue.  "If you don't  publish it, it could cause more harm than good,"  he told our reporter. This reporter visited the Serrekunda clinic last weekend and saw nurses dispensing large quantities of the expired drug to patients. 

      Dr Mariama Tala Jallow, chief pharmacist at the Central Medical Store, yesterday confirmed to the Daily Observer  that the oral rehydration salts were indeed expired but pointed out, "It is still safe to use. We will not dispense drugs to any patient if it is not safe to use because our main responsibility is to treat patients and not to give them more problems. And for diarrhoea, the ordinary ORS doesn't have any side effects. Even if it has expired, the drug is safe to use." 

      Dr Jallow further point out that "we only dispense expired drugs from our health facility if our new stock hasn't arrived yet. Like in this case, the ORS which we have ordered hasn't arrived. We have been receiving a lot of drugs but we are still waiting for the ORS. So, in 
      the meantime, we have assessed this ORS and we know that it is still safe to use and we should still continue using them.". 

     



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