PHCC dispenses three million prescriptions

DOHA: Pharmacies across Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) follow high standards of medicine safety and dispense approximately three million prescriptions annually, said officials yesterday.

At present, 26 health centers function under PHCC across the country. It includes six new health centers with pharmacies implementing several initiatives to enhance the services, said Dr Durriya Mubarak Al Qahtani, Director, Integrated Care and Continuity Care at PHCC addressing media persons yesterday. The PHCC’s pharmacy services include in-house pharmacies, school pharmacies and home care services.

“We make sure that all medicine dispensed from our pharmacies are standardized. We have continued development plan for pharmacists to update their knowledge and skills in dispensing medicine,” said Dr Al Qahthani. The pharmacies at the new health centers are designed to be specious, cater patients with special needs, provide more efficient and quicker services employed competent pharmacists. Also has introduced a concept called ‘My Care Billing’ involves patients paying for their medicines at the pharmacy instead of first going to the cashier counter and then to the pharmacy to collect the medicines.

For the safety and wellbeing of patients the Pharmacy Services and Integrated Care at PHCC has decreased the start line of antibiotics, provide counseling about medication and implemented integrated services with other health care providers.

“We have the ‘Better Together’ approach in services in line with the National Health Strategy 2018-2022,” said Dr Al Qahtani. “We work with Ministry of Public Health and Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) to facilitate patients and improve the waiting time,” she said.

She was joined by Dr Wael Ezzeldin Saeed, Pharmacy Affairs Specialist, Operations, Clinical Operations and Support at PHCC during the media briefing. According to him, integrated services between PHCC and HMC include early detection and screening of cancer and care for health issues related to cardiology, dermatology and mental health. All patient records are shared across the public health care system through the Clinical Information System (CIS). The PHCC is also studying HMC’s experience on robotic medicine dispensing system, which has been introduced at new hospitals.