Essential medicines out of stock for six months at Cooper Hospital, patients forced to buy drugs outside

Nineteen-year-old Sujay Sardaar, who lives with a mental disability in Andheri East, has been under psychiatric care at Cooper Hospital since 2024. His father, Ananta, 58, said that for the past six months, the family has rarely received the prescribed medicines at the hospital

MUMBAI: Patients visiting the BMC-run Cooper Hospital in Juhu have been struggling for months as several essential and psychiatric medicines continue to remain out of stock. The crisis, hospital staff say, has persisted for nearly half a year, forcing many patients — especially those from low-income families — to purchase costly medicines from private pharmacies.

Mumbai, India - October 1, 2018: Nurses and Ward boys of Cooper Hospital on Strike for shortage of staff and several other demands at Cooper Hospital in Mumbai, India, on Monday, October 1, 2018. (Photo by Satyabrata Tripathy/Hindustan Times) (Satyabrata Tripathy/HT Photo)

For families of psychiatric patients, the situation has become particularly distressing.

Nineteen-year-old Sujay Sardaar, who lives with a mental disability in Andheri East, has been under psychiatric care at Cooper Hospital since 2024. His father, Ananta, 58, said that for the past six months, the family has rarely received the prescribed medicines at the hospital.

“On October 16, I was about to leave for our village in West Bengal. The doctor prescribed two months’ worth of medicines because it’s difficult to get them there,” said Ananta. “But when I went to the dispensary, they said there was no stock. Later, one staff member told me that these medicines are only given to admitted patients, not outpatients. I had no choice but to buy them outside.”

For Ananta, who earns a living through odd jobs, the cost has been crushing. “My son’s psychiatric medicines cost ₹450 for just one sheet, apart from other tablets for digestion and supplements. I can’t afford to spend thousands every month. We go to public hospitals expecting affordable treatment. But every time, they prescribe medicines and then tell us to buy them outside. What’s the point then?” he said.

The shortage extends far beyond psychiatric medicines. Hospital staff and patients told HT that several basic drugs — including Diclofenac, Pantop 40 mg, Calcium 500 mg, Augmentin (tablet and syrup), Azee syrup, and Gelusil — have not been available for over six months. Even anti-rabies vaccines have been out of stock, forcing bite victims to run from one hospital to another.

A woman who had come for her third anti-rabies dose last week said she was turned away.

“I got the first dose at a private clinic and the second at Cooper last month. When I came for the third, they said there was no stock and asked me to go to VN Desai Hospital. It’s frustrating when you depend on public healthcare,” she said.

A senior official from another BMC-run hospital said that the shortage stems from bureaucratic delays in the purchase and tendering process.

“The local purchase department cannot order large quantities without clearance. Once stocks finish, they must float new tenders, which takes time. There have also been delays in updating the central purchase department’s drug schedule. Without the updated list of approved vendors, hospitals can’t place emergency orders directly,” the official said.

A senior doctor at Cooper Hospital confirmed that the shortage has impacted both inpatients and outpatients. “There have been consistent gaps in the supply chain. Even basic items like saline, bandages, and injections are sometimes unavailable. Patients are often told to buy them from outside,” the doctor said.

“All previous purchase orders have been cleared and new orders for medicines in shortage have been placed. There are some new doses of anti rabies vaccines that have come in and while most antibiotics are present, medicines such as augmentin are not available,” said a senior BMC health official.