E-Paper
Shutters down on private pharmacy at PGI Emergency, attendants hassled
Patients' attendants at the emergency ward of PGIMER are struggling to find medicines after a private pharmacy closed following the end of its contract. The pharmacy will be replaced by the AMRIT pharmacy, which is expected to be operational within a week. In the meantime, patients' attendants are having to travel further to obtain medication.
The attendants of patients admitted at the emergency ward of Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) have been facing a tough time sourcing medicines for the last three days as a private pharmacy operating here has brought its shutters down following the end of its contract.
The contract ended on December 31 following which the pharmacist vacated the shop.
PGIMER authorities said that the Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment (AMRIT) will take the private pharmacy’s place. “A few formalities with AMRIT pharmacy are underway and it will be functional soon, hopefully within a week. The chemist shop will pay a maximum of 5 lakhs monthly,” said a PGI official.
The private pharmacy was paying ₹1.8 crore a month as rent.
With no stop-gap arrangements in place, patients’ attendants are left with no choice but to go to far off places to get injections and other medicines prescribed by the doctors.
The direct effect of the closure is seen on the existing chemist shops in Nehru hospital, where the footfall has increased.
A Ludhiana resident, whose mother is admitted at the emergency ward, said, “My mother is in a critical condition, and I find myself running from one shop to another for medicines. Previously, the shop was conveniently located inside, but now I have to obtain medicines from the ground floor chemist shop at Nehru Hospital.”
Jaspreet Singh, another attendant, highlighted a significant challenge they are facing, stating that obtaining injections has become problematic. Certain injections are unavailable at the AMRIT shops within the hospital, compelling them to go to private chemist shops in Sector 11, opposite PGI.
Another attendant of a patient, Deepa Rani, remarked that PGI should have made arrangements for this transition before closing the shop. PGIMER director Dr Vivek Lal said: “Extra staff deployment has been made at other pharmacies to avoid inconvenience to the patients.”
