THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Local pharmacists in Kerala are set to play a crucial role in detecting outbreaks of infectious diseases in their communities, as the health department looks to involve them in disease surveillance efforts.
The Drugs Control Department (DCD) aims to transform nearly 27,000 licensed pharmacies across the state into ‘Sentinel Pharmacies’, which would report drug purchases.
The DCD is developing a framework to accredit these pharmacies, which will help identify unusual patterns in medicine usage. “A sentinel network will enable us to detect disproportionate use of medications,” said a source.
Historically, health sentinel networks have relied on data from primary care physicians and hospitals, often overlooking the expertise of community pharmacists in drug-related matters. The new network aims to address this by enabling earlier interventions.
“Fever is a common symptom of many communicable diseases. Many people visit a pharmacy for fever medication before seeing a doctor. By including pharmacies in the sentinel surveillance network, we can track spikes in medications like paracetamol, which may signal an outbreak. This approach allows for early intervention based on regional drug utilisation patterns,” said Dr Viswanathan K V, joint director (Medicine), Directorate of Medical Education.
The health department also intends to enhance drug dispensation practices through proper counselling and educating the public on the rational and safe use of medicines.
The Union government has agreed to fund the initiative based on the DCD’s proposal.
The department plans to develop software for pharmacies to update drug information and has initiated discussions with pharmacy organisations. Accreditation by the DCD is expected to enhance the pharmacies’ credibility among the public.
POTENTIAL CHALLENGES
Welcoming the proposal, All Kerala Chemists & Druggists Association state president A N Mohan urged the Drugs Control Department to take pharmacies into confidence before implementing the project. O C Naveen Chand, president of Kerala State Pharmacy Council, highlighted potential challenges, noting some pharmacies might be hesitant to share sales data.
