Drug shortage puts medical professionals in quandary

Specialists in limbo without proper guidelines

- By SHEAIN FERNANDOPULLE

In the wake of Daily Mirror's reports on the prevailing shortage of critical drugs, medical specialists have raised serious concerns over the lack of clear directives from the Ministry of Health regarding how doctors should act when essential medical items are not available within the public health system.

In a letter addressed to the Health Minister,

Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, the Association of Medical Specialists (AMS) pointed out that medical staff are increasingly being forced to request patients to obtain medicines, consumables, and laboratory investigations from external sources, an act that, in the absence of official guidance, has subjected them to public criticism and professional risk.