Oyo state government, through its State Global Fund coordinator, Dr Olubunmi Ayinde has expressed dissatisfaction at the dearth of HIV test kits and malaria medicines arising from logistics from its partners, Global Health Supply Chain
Dr Ayinde spoke at the third AIDS/Tuberculosis and Malaria (ATM) coordination meeting with the state’s implementing partners and civil society organisations on these diseases at the Oyo State Health Ministry Board room.
She declared that delay in supply of these items had made them to be out of stock and as depriving individuals’ access to them wherever they are within the state.
According to her, “The delay in supplies has been a recurrent issue, aside from health facilities not having enough drugs for the fourth quarter. If they have enough drugs, we would not have one drug finishing while another stock is yet to be made available.
“Throughout last year (2019), we did not have issues like this at the beginning of the year. If they have the four months stock for HIV test kits, we should not have issues at all. So there is something wrong somewhere. There cannot be healthcare service delivery without commodities.”
Dr Ayinde also appealed for a reduction in turnover time for results of samples for HIV viral load and Tuberculosis tests are taken to laboratories outside the state.
She, therefore, called on all the implementing partners and civil society organsiations to work out all the issues inimical to access to antimalarial and HIV test kits in the state.
AIDS Prevention Initiative in Nigeria (APIN) representative, Dr Folake Adurogbola said that the stock out of HIV test kits was a national problem since its distribution had been based on assigned targets for each health centre.
Global Health Supply Chain representative Mr Seun Adeboga said that supplies of the HIV test kits and antimalaria medicines were based on targets set for each facility, assuring that there was never a stockout of these items.
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