BHUBANESWAR: Days after the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) made it mandatory for doctors to specify reasons while prescribing antibiotics, Odisha government has warned medicine stores and pharmacies of stringent action if they are found selling antibiotics without prescriptions.
State drugs controller Ashok Kumar Patra has directed all drug inspectors to ensure there is no over-the-counter (OTC) sale of antibiotics in the state and the druggists keep the data on procurement and sale of antibiotics properly maintained. Action as per the Drugs and Cosmetics Act will be taken and the drug license may be cancelled if any druggist/chemist is found selling antibiotics without prescription or fails to present the data on the sale of antimicrobials, he stated.
At present, Schedule H contains 551 drugs including antibiotics and Schedule X contains 16 drugs. Under the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, drugs specified under Schedule H and Schedule X are required to be sold by retail on the prescription of a registered medical practitioner only. “In violation of the rules, a show cause notice will be issued to the druggist/chemist concerned. They can be barred from the trade if the reasons are unsatisfactory. The drugs inspectors have been asked to monitor the sale of antibiotics scrupulously,” Patra said.
Even as the rules specify selling of antibiotics only on valid prescriptions, it is equally important that medical practitioners contribute to the cause by specifying the exact indication on their prescriptions when prescribing the drugs, he said.
As antimicrobial resistance poses severe threat to public health worldwide, contributing to millions of deaths annually, earlier this week, the DGHS had issued a directive to all physicians and associations of doctors to stress on the mandatory practice of providing clear indications while prescribing antimicrobials.
Director of health services Dr Bijay Kumar Mohapatra attributed the rise in antimicrobial resistance to the irrational use of antibiotics. Stating that over dose of antimicrobials is undermining the efficacy of drugs, he stressed on judicious use of antibiotics as per specific requirements.
“No medicine should be sold without prescription. But chemists selling drugs, including antibiotics, without prescription is a concern everywhere. If the practice is not regulated, non-communicable and zoonotic diseases will pose a big threat due to growing antimicrobial resistance among people. Doctors should also be careful while prescribing antimicrobials. The sensitivity of the diseases has to be understood,” he added.