A PHARMACIST, Puran Bipath and his wife, both employees of the West Demerara Hospital, are in the custody of the Guyana Police Force (GPF), assisting with investigations into a suspected drug procurement and supply fraud after irregularities were discovered by a team from the office of the Minister of Public Health.

In a release the Ministry of Public Health said that the team, acting on Minister Volda Lawrence’s instruction, had been conducting a fact-finding mission, when they discovered the discrepancies this week.

Mr. John Adams, the Member of Parliament for the Region, in an invited comment said that the team visited the hospital on Wednesday and found that there were some inconsistencies in the record keeping for pharmaceuticals. Following internal investigations, a report was made to the GPF and the Ministry of Public Health is cooperating with authorities.

Earlier this week Minister Lawrence has made it clear that there is no shortage of drugs for the nation’s hospitals. The Minister was at the time responding to a number of queries from Region Six (East Berbice/ Corentyne) residents about an apparent shortage of critical drugs to treat patients at the New Amsterdam Hospital.

According to a press release from the ministry, last Friday a pharmacist from the hospital visited the Materials Management Unit (MMU) to collect supplies to restock the Berbice facility. “The pharmacist chose what she thought was critical for the hospital,” a senior MMU official said Tuesday. The official said MMU employees worked very late to ensure the NA Hospital received the much-needed supply.

However, the vehicle the hospital sent “was too small” to handle the quantum of drugs, the release further noted. Consequently, “drugs are banked up” at the MMU awaiting transportation for the hospital, the official said. The rest of the drugs to satisfy the needs of Region Six patients were uplifted from the MMU Wednesday, the Ministry of Public Health stated.