Assessment of Essential Medicines Shortages and Contributing Factors in Public Health Facilities in Southern Nation, Nationalities and Peoples‟ Region of Ethiopia
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Date
2021-08
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Addis Abeba University
Abstract
Background: Essential medicines shortages pose a serious challenge for health care
facilit ies in Southern Nat ions, Nat ionalit ies and Peoples‟ Region, often affecting health
care system. The objectives of the study were to identify the causes of essential
medicines shortages and to point out solutions to prevent this problem in public health
facilities of the Region.
Methods: A mixed methods design was applied to assess stock outs of essential
medicines and its contributing factors in 30 public health facilities. The quantitative data
were analyzed using SPSS version 20; while the qualitative data was categorized into
themes based on the study objectives and analyzed manually.
Results: The average stock out on the day of visit was 9(30%) with the 4(24%) of the
items were with below minimum stock level., 6(38%) were in safe stock level ,and
3(16%) were in overstock level. The average stock out duration of selected essential
medicines was 74 days. Sub-optimal use of the Logistics information system, poor
quantification and distribution practices, limited number of human resources for supply
chain management and inadequate skills, insufficient budget and irrational prescribing
and dispensing practices were raised by the key informants as contributing factors for the
medicines shortages in the Region.
Conclusion: - Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples‟ Region has experienced
shortages of essential medicines. Factors such as poor logistic management information
system, lack of skill in logistics activities, less commitment, weak monitoring and
evaluation systems, irrational prescribing and dispensing practices and insufficient budget
allocation and its mismanagement contributed to the shortages.
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Keywords
Contributing factors, Essential Medicines, Shortage, stock out, Public health facilities