Kenya - Facing Drug Shortage

Peter Orengo wrote in his March 27, 2012, article on The Standard about the drug shortage hitting Kenyan hospitals.  Due to the shortage, public hospitals are resorting "to use funds meant for development to buy emergency medicine from local pharmacies."  The Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (Kemsa) is supposed to provide the hospitals with the necessary drugs to ensure the patients are able to receive proper medical care.  Some people, including the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists, and Dentists Union (KMPDU), do not believe the government is doing its job in supplying the needed drugs.  According to Orengo, this drug shortage is just one of many that has occurred in the country.  "Malarial drugs, rehydration salts, anti-retrovirals (ARVs) and antibiotics were some of the drugs cited to be in short supply," Orengo wrote about a study done last year on the national drug supply issue.

When I read this article, it reminded me of the drug shortages that are hitting this country, along with Canada, and Australia.  Reports and news stories are constantly covering the problems the health care industry is facing in ensuring patients are treated with the medication they need.  Even though we hear about these shortages in the United States and other Western nations, we do not always receive reports on other nations, like those in Africa.  ABC, NBC, Fox News, and other television news channels normally do a good job reporting on events happening in other countries.  However, not everything that occurs throughout the world is able to be covered in the US, since most Americans are more concerned with problems affecting this country.

As we have discussed in my History of American Foreign Relations class this term, American presidents are often elected due to concerns within this country.  Domestic issues (the economy, health care, taxes, the federal deficit, etc.) and experience dealing with them take precedence over other problems occurring outside this country.  There are exceptions to this idea (Israel, War in Iraq and Afghanistan, etc.), but we as Americans are concerned with problems in our own lives.  This has been a characteristic of the United States policy since its independence over two hundred years ago.

Even though this fact may be true for many Americans, I believe we need to be more aware of issues facing countries like Kenya.  The article mentioned that people on ARVs are suffering due to this drug shortage.  We have discussed in class how the HIV/AIDS epidemic greatly affected African nations.  If Kenya and other countries dealing with HIV/AIDS experience drug shortages, the progress they have made in improving their citizens' health could be reversed.  I hope that Kenya can solve its drug supply issue, so its people do not have to suffer from not having their proper medications.

Jenny

Article - 
Orengo, P. (2012, March 27). Drug shortage hits public hospitals. The Standard. Retrieved March 31, 2012, from http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/health/InsidePage.php?id=2000055053&cid=442&currentPage=1
Map - http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/africa/ke.htm

Related Articles - 

• Australia faces drug shortages: experts. (2012, March 7). ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved March 31, 2012, from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-03-07/australia-faces-drug-shortages-experts/3875324
• Dick, M. (2012, March 29). Clark:  Drug shortages are compromising patient health and safety. Boston.com. Retrieved March 31, 2012, from http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/melrose/2012/03/clark_drug_shortages_are_compr.html
• Kirkey, S. (2012, March 30). Shortages of drugs put patients at risk. Calgary Herald. Retrieved March 31, 2012, from http://www.calgaryherald.com/Shortages+drugs+patients+risk/6383987/story.html