By Samuel Abigael Busayo (SIWES student, D S Adegbenro ICT Polytechnic)
On Friday, the Benue State Government incinerated expired drugs valued at more than N200 million.
This disposal took place on the grounds of Benue State University Teaching Hospital, situated along Gboko road in Makurdi.
On Wednesday, Stephen Hwande, the Chief Medical Director of BSUTH, had publicly expressed his intention to eliminate the expired drugs that were stored at Muhammad Buhari Mother and Child Hospital in the capital city.
Hwande, during discussions with journalists at the location of the drug disposal, asserted that these expired drugs belonged to the Teaching Hospital. He stated, These drugs were acquired by the hospital for use by our patients.
It’s inexplicable why they were left to expire. When you have drugs with short expiration dates, you can distribute some to other hospitals, such as Internally Displaced Persons camps, or use them for medical outreach before they expire.
There’s no reason for such a substantial amount of valuable drugs to go to waste when the entire state is in need.
To maintain our reputation and ensure people don’t mistakenly use expired drugs, we decided to destroy them.
When asked about the types of drugs destroyed, the CMD replied, All kinds of drugs, including antibiotics, anti-hypertensive, anti-malaria medications, as well as medical supplies like iodine, bandages, and urine bags.
The quantity could have formed a sizable pharmacy in Makurdi.
The CMD also disclosed that there were around 100 unclaimed deceased individuals in the hospital morgue.
He mentioned that the hospital had contacted the State Commissioner of Police to request permission for the disposal of these unclaimed corpses.
He added, Upon taking office, I inspected the storage facilities and discovered drugs and medical supplies worth over N200 million. Additionally, I found over 100 unclaimed corpses in the morgue.
