The
trade and consumption of counterfeit drugs increase mortality and morbidity
because such drugs lack active ingredients, whilst patients, families, health system,
industry and medicine regulatory authorities are over-burdened.
In
Ghana, a counterfeit drug is defined as one which is deliberately or
fraudulently mislabeled with respect to its identity or source, according to
the Public Health Act 2011, Act 851.
Ashanti
Zonal Manager of the Pharmacy Council, Kenneth Simmons, says the infinite
demand for medicine is a major factor that encourages production of fake
medicines.
Other
factors include high prices of medicines and inability of consumers to detect counterfeit
medicines.
Mr.
Simmons however believes distributors and retailers have a major role to play
in discouraging the trade in counterfeit products.
“If
we source our products from the right manufacturers and registered
distributors, definitely we can weed out these counterfeiters who bring in
sub-standard or fake products,” he observed.
Mr.
Simmons entreats drug distributors to ensure products are supplied using
company invoices so that “in case any product or defect is detected on the
product, we can just go straight to that point and try to correct it to put the
public at ease”.
Ayrton
Drug Manufacturing Limited has been engaging its wholesalers to detect fake and
counterfeit drugs at the first annual regional wholesalers’ conference in
Kumasi.
Regional
Sales Manager of Ayrton Drug/Adcock Ingram, Benjamin Appiah, reiterated the
company’s quest to ensure end-users of medicines access genuine and quality
products.
He
says the company is poised to be among the first three leading brands in the
market by end of year.
Story
by Kofi Adu Domfeh
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