This week patients at several clinics in Gqeberha were met with an alarming sight: nurses abandoning their posts to work as packers and dispensers at the provincial medical depot, roles ordinarily reserved for trained pharmacy personnel.
“We now have to go and pack our own medicine at the depot. It doesn’t end there; we have to register it and then dispense it. Remember, we are based in Gqeberha, and our depot covers as far as Butterworth,” said one frustrated nurse.
The responsibility for packing, registering and dispensing medication lies squarely with pharmacists and pharmacy support personnel, including pharmacist interns and assistants, all of whom must work under the supervision of a responsible pharmacist as required by South Africa’s pharmacy and medicines legislation and Good Pharmacy Practice guidelines.
But with no other option, some clinic staff left their already strained facilities to fetch and prepare medication.
“We had to go to the depot because we could not turn away patients who travel long distances to reach the clinic,” the nurse told TimesLIVE. “We had to pack the medication and leave it there for the courier to deliver.”
Eastern Cape health department spokesperson Siyanda Manana confirmed that the PE [Gqeberha] Provincial Medical Depot had experienced a temporary backlog in processing and dispatching medicine orders over recent weeks.
To date, no formal reports have indicated medicine-related errors, treatment delays or compromised care arising from this temporary measure
— Siyanda Manana, Eastern Cape health department spokesperson
“To expedite turnaround time and ensure continuity of supply to facilities, health-facility pharmacy personnel were given the opportunity to visit the depot to assist in preparing the orders they themselves had already submitted,” Manana said.
He said the support was voluntary and intended only to speed up delivery during the backlog period.
Manana said all stock handled by facility personnel was bulk stock, kept sealed in its original manufacturer’s packaging — significantly reducing the risk of contamination, dosage errors or compromised efficacy.
“Facility staff do not dispense or pack patient-ready packs at the depot. They only assist with assembling bulk items for their own orders. Once the order is prepared, depot staff still conduct full verification and checking to minimise errors. Facility staff also do not transport stock; the verified orders remain at the depot until handed over to the service provider.”
According to Manana, the situation was a temporary operational deviation driven primarily by HR shortages at the depot.
“To address this sustainably, the depot is in the process of recruiting five permanent pharmacy assistants, with an anticipated start date of January 1. To ensure clinical staff are not diverted from patient care, only pharmacy personnel were asked to assist on a temporary basis.”
Nursing and other clinical staff had not been assigned pharmacy or logistics duties, and facilities continued to have the option to submit emergency orders for expedited processing.
“To date, no formal reports have indicated medicine-related errors, treatment delays or compromised care arising from this temporary measure.”
TimesLIVE
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