The National Drug Authority (NDA) says cases of patients who are harmed after taking unsafe drugs are on the increase.
The director in charge of drug safety at NDA, Dr. Hellen Ndaji says in the last five years, over 10,000 patients experienced various effects in their bodies after taking medication from health facilities.
She says they are not taking this lightly, explaining that the authority is taking some strides to ensure that they minimize the medication errors made by health workers as well as people who are taking drugs without health workers’ directions.
She says one of the factors contributing to the rise of these cases is self-medication by various individuals. She made the revelation while commemorating the World Patient Safety day (September 15).
The 72nd World Health Assembly held in May 2019, adopted a resolution calling for global action on patient safety, urging member states to prioritize patient safety in health care policies and programs.
In December 2021, Uganda through the Ministry of Health launched the Patient Safety Project with a specific focus on reducing unsafe medication and improving approach to dealing with medication errors in the 16 regional Referral Hospitals.
