The Academy of Pharmacy Management & Guidance (APMG), a pharmacy training centre instituted by the accredited distributors of pharmaceutical products in Kolkata, in a resolution, demanded Indian Medical Association (IMA) to break their silence over the direct sale of certain essential drugs to patients by certain members of the Association in collusion with some pharmaceutical companies.

According to Joydeep Sarkar, secretary of APMG, IMA is not serious in restraining the doctors in assisting the pharma companies for selling life saving drugs directly to the patients through their clinics at high prices eliminating the role of pharmacists. Despite many complaints,  the doctors’ body is silent over this unethical practice of the doctor-manufacturer alliance. He said IMA is complaining about scarcity of pharmacists but they are not taking  notice of this unethical practice.

“We will meet the office-bearers of the IMA and the Minister in charge of the health and apprise them about the unholy understanding  between the companies and a section of doctors of the IMA. If they do not stop this practice, we will file a suit in the court. We are collecting the data of the companies indulging in this illegal sale and the number of essential drugs sold through doctors,” he told Pharmabiz.

Joydeep said the companies supply their products to some particular wholesalers on invoices issued to a doctor or physician with a price cheaper than the actual MRP. The quantity of the drugs supplied is more than the actual requirement of the doctor and a price variation of 25 per cent is found between those supplied to the doctor’s invoices and those sold to other traders. If 40 per cent of the formulations can be sold directly to the patients through medical representatives with the support of registered physicians, the pharmacist community stand to lose a lot of business in the state, he said.

The resolution against the illegal activity of the doctors and manufacturers was passed by the APMG while observing the Fifth Pharmacy Workers Day in Kolkata last week. In the meeting a discussion was held on the subject. ‘Pharmacist’s Role - Its impact on today’s pharmaceutical trade’.

The pharma traders attended the meeting sought explanation for the appointment of matriculate Anganwadi health workers for distributing medicines to the people in villages with no knowledge about drugs or pharmacy. They expressed concern on the method adopted by the government health workers in West Bengal while doing polio eradication program at railway stations and other public places without proper facilities to preserve the vaccines.

The APMG accused the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) for taking an indifferent attitude to the way certain doctors are engaged in drug trade by undermining the chances of pharmacists and the state government authorities for engaging unqualified health workers in dispensing drugs to the rural public.

While speaking to Pharmabiz, Joydeep Sarkar said APMG will chalk out a programme of action soon to impart education and training to the chemists fraternity in West Bengal. Academy is conducting a three hours special training programme on drug pricing, drug storage, inventory maintenance and social laws at Burdwan in next month.