... consistent healthcare service delivery and investment in right personnel and healthcare equipment in public hospitals would further reduce cost of medication ...
Haltons Chief Pharmacist and Founder , Louis Machogu
and help the Pharmacy and Poisons Board ( PBB ), the industry regulator , eliminate quark pharmacists and backstreet chemists .
“ By branding ourselves , we take responsibility of the medicine we sell and assure you that they are qualified ,” he said .
Chain pharmacies are also expected to lower cost of medication in the country . Haltons for example plans to venture into small towns and operate “ small localised stores as opposed to large ones .” By covering these towns , locals will reduce distances travelled to access medicine . The pharmacy chain also expects to reduce cost of medicine owing to benefits from economies of scale emanating from purchasing large volumes of drugs from suppliers .
Louis opened a can of worms in the sector saying the cost of medicine in Kenya is high and insurance companies should cease exploiting existence of chain
pharmacies to innovate cheap medical products for the mass market .
Medical insurance covers form a lucrative business for underwriters inviting insurance companies to work with chain pharmacies to provide outpatient cover , he said .
Medication cost will also reduce “ if physicians and pharmacists work together to reduce risk of a patient taking ineffective medicine in terms of cost and curing the disease ” according to him .
The pharmacy chain founder invited specialist pharmacists , particularly clinical pharmacists , to collaborate with Haltons and run specialist clinics at the pharmacy branches .
He also added that consistent healthcare service delivery and investment in right personnel and healthcare equipment in public hospitals would further reduce cost of medication .
Prior to Haltons pharmacies , “ Kenyans were getting unqualified personnel serving them . You found drugs stolen from government facilities and others acquired from dubious sources sold in the market . We decided to change that by stocking same quality drugs and hiring same caliber and quality of people to serve our stores ,” he said .
Mr Machogu also said Haltons pharmacies offer comprehensive medical services to patients . The pharmacy chain runs medical counselling units that monitors patients ’ recovery process through technology . Haltons pharmacies , the founder continued , offer a mobile phone service that reminds customers when medication is due for refill or when doctors have scheduled checkups .
Haltons also monitors patients ’ health progress on behalf of doctors in cases where patients experience side effects from the subscriptions . Haltons also advises patients on cost implications of prescribed innovator drugs . Louis was however quick to add that Haltons
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