The Bauchi State Drugs and Medical Consumables Management Agency has concluded a major capacity-building initiative, training 800 health workers to enhance the handling and management of essential medical supplies across the state's healthcare facilities.
Extensive Training to Prevent Commodity Mismanagement
The training programme, which wrapped up recently, targeted personnel from 26 secondary health facilities, one tertiary hospital, and 323 primary healthcare centres located across the state's political wards. The Managing Director of the agency, Abdulkadir Ahmed, emphasized that the exercise was crucial to prevent the mismanagement of vital medical commodities, which can disrupt healthcare delivery.
Ahmed detailed the selection process, noting that three personnel were chosen from each facility. The trainees also included essential desk officers and some directors from the local government areas, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of supply chain management from the facility to the administrative level.
N500 Million Investment in Local Procurement and Recapitalisation
Highlighting the agency's recent achievements, the Managing Director revealed a significant financial commitment to strengthening the local medical supply chain. He confirmed that the agency expended N250 million on recapitalisation in partnership with 18 local pharmaceutical companies.
This collaboration, according to Ahmed, has made it possible for the state government to source its major medical consumables directly from these domestic firms, promoting local industry and ensuring sustainability. He further announced that an additional N250 million has been approved for the agency. These funds are earmarked for purchasing more medical commodities, conducting further personnel training, and supporting other major operational activities.
Strengthening Healthcare at the Grassroots
The scale of this intervention underscores the state government's focus on fortifying its healthcare system, particularly at the primary and secondary levels. By equipping hundreds of workers with improved skills in managing medical consumables, the state aims to achieve several key outcomes:
- Reduce waste and leakage of essential medical supplies.
- Ensure consistent availability of drugs and consumables in hospitals and clinics.
- Improve the quality of care delivered to residents across all 20 local government areas.
- Boost the local economy through strategic partnerships with indigenous pharmaceutical companies.
This initiative represents a concrete step towards addressing systemic challenges in healthcare logistics. The combined strategy of large-scale training and substantial investment in local procurement is expected to create a more resilient and efficient system for managing medical consumables in Bauchi State.
