The Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) has sealed a total of 387 pharmacies and patent medicine shops across different locations in Benue State.
PCN’s Director of Inspection and Monitoring, Pharm. Anthonia Aruya, who made the disclosure on Friday at a press conference in Makurdi, said the exercise was carried out within five days of operations in continuation of the Council’s activities aimed at sanitising the system.
“At the end of the exercise, a total of 556 premises were visited comprising of 84 pharmacies and 472 patent medicine shops.
A total of 387 premises were sealed comprising of 44 pharmacies and 343 patent medicine shops.
“16 premises comprising of three pharmacies and 13 Patent and Proprietary Medicine Vendors (PPMV) were issued compliance directives for various offences ranging from poor handling of controlled substances, sale and dispensing of ethical/prescription drugs without the supervision of a pharmacist, unhygienic environment, poor documentation among others in the interest of public safety,” she said.
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Aruya added that the exercise was meant to streamline the drug distribution value chain in order to promote the provision of safe, effective and quality medicine distributed along registered and currently licensed premises.
She advised the general public to ask for registration status of facilities where they access medicines by requesting the current licenses issued by PCN from any pharmaceutical outlet to safeguard themselves from patronising quacks.
Aruya also appealed for further cooperation from all stakeholders in the future even as she stressed that sensitisation and guidance for stakeholders would continue while those found wanting would be allowed to follow due process to acquire their licences.
