NAFDAC Monitors Vaccines’ Potency In South – East

The National Agency for Foods, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) says it has ensured potency of vaccines in South-East through regular monitoring of vaccine storage facilities in hospitals and pharmaceutical stores.
The outgoing Zonal Coordinator of NAFDAC South-East, Mr Dauda Gimba, told newsmen in Enugu that the agency had done excellently well in vaccines monitoring in the entire zone.
“For any vaccine we see on shelves or dysfunctional refrigerators or cooling system both in government or private hospitals, including pharmaceutical stores, we seize and destroy immediately.
“We keep monitoring the drug markets through our staff and reliable informants to track any drug dealer that stock his shop with vaccines; for the destruction of these exposed vaccines and prosecution of the drug dealer.
“Vaccines by its nature become poison; when they are not kept in very cool temperature or exposed to sun or heat temperature of rooms or shops.
“So, for NAFDAC, there is no compromise on vaccine monitoring or the way we deal with any defaulter,’’ he said.
Gimba noted that the agency had been sensitising hospitals on the need to have alternative power supply (generating sets and solar power) just to ensure that the potency of vaccines were never compromised.
“While during routine immunisation, we ensure that vaccinators carry cooler-packs placed with ice blocks as they move to remote places for immunisations,’’ he said.
Contributing, Director of Public Health in Enugu State, Dr Okechukwu Ossai, said that the state government had ensured regular supply of vaccines to government-owned and private health facilities through the “Free Maternal and Child Healthcare Programme’’.
Ossai said that since vaccines were mostly used by expecting and nursing mothers as well as children under the age of five, the state government had continued to immunise against diseases affecting this class of people free-of-charge.
“Nobody pays for any immunisation or vaccination in the state since government and our health partners had made the payment and provided the vaccines already.
“The people of the state know this through the massive radio, television, billboard and posters campaigns we have made on the benefit they will derive from the state’s Free Maternal and Child Healthcare Programme,’’ he said.
Ossai, who doubles as the Chief Disease Surveillance Officer of the state, said that apart from the routine immunisation that captures targeted children or individuals, free vaccination is always on-going in government-owned and private health facilities all year round.
“Presently, we have over 520 vaccination points in various health facilities scattered all over the state, while among this number, about 215 of them are privately owned hospitals and health facilities.
“We know we cannot do it alone as government, so we collaborated with private health facilities and government donated free refrigerators powered by solar-powers to store the vaccines we regularly issue to them.
“While our central vaccine storage store has three sources of power and the cold store have a temperature reader that indicate the temperature of the store and the vaccine instantly,’’ he said.
The director revealed that few affluence but misguided individuals in the state still go to buy vaccines in pharmaceutical stores in order to show affluence to peers; when government and our health partners had provided for it all.
A pharmacist, who spoke to journalists on condition of anonymity, said that he sells vaccines, especially to health professionals who need it for emergency, adding that most hospitals get theirs direct from the state Ministry of Health.
The pharmacist, who operates a pharmaceutical store on Agbani Road in Enugu, said: “however, the cost is relative low.
“A dose of tetanus vaccine is sold or administered for N100, which covers cost of preserving the vaccines in our refrigerators through generating sets.
“We, pharmacist operating in Enugu, have ensured that we have functional refrigerators and standby generating sets to power it as stipulated by the state Ministry of Health and NAFDAC,’’ he said.