New Health Minister committed to addressing the current drug shortage in the country

By Simon Tavake

The Minister of Health and Medical Services Dr. Paul Popora assured parliament that his ministry is working on addressing the issue of drug shortage in the country.

Minister Popora made the assurance in parliament on Friday following the call from opposition members to address the current drug shortage that is affecting the country.
He said, he is now dealing with the issue.

Minister Popora stated that an investigation into the supply chain of drugs entering the country was conducted two weeks after his appointment as Health Minister.

“The first thing I did over the two weeks following my appointment as Minister of Health was to visit the ministry even before my formal welcome. The first issue was to investigate the supply chain of our drugs”.

“I can assure you all that I am addressing the issues we are experiencing, and I am working on mitigating them. I will present a cabinet paper for discussion,” Minister Popora said.

The Health Minister emphasized two key performance indicators (KPIs): ‘efficiency and sustainability,’ which he said are the only solutions given the business aspect of the National Referral Hospital (NRH).

He also stressed that the current situation is the impact of urbanization on the healthcare system.

“I have emphasized two KPIs to the team: efficiency and sustainability. In the business case of the NRH phase one and two, these are the only solutions. The current issues we face at the NRH are due to the impact of urbanization on the healthcare system. We need a multisectoral approach to solve these issues,” he said.

He added that a solution paper, which will be included in the government’s 100-day policy, will be submitted to Cabinet for deliberation.

“The solutions will be in the ‘100 days,’ where I will detail the mitigations for drug shortage concerns that are often highlighted in the media,” the Health Minister added.

Meanwhile, Minister Popora also voiced his ongoing engagement on social media, particularly Facebook, which he said is where he listens, learns, and addresses the issues affecting the healthcare system across the country.

Being the new Minister of Health and Medical Services, Minister Popora is no stranger to the medical industry.

He is a medical doctor by profession and a businessman.

He was elected into parliament as the Member of Parliament for North Guadalcanal Constituency during the joint election on 17 April 2024.
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