A drugstore in Ho Chi Minh City (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) -The Ministry of Health has launched a project wherein by 2020, all pharmacieswill be required to sell antibiotics only to patients carrying doctors’prescriptions.
The ministry will workwith local health departments in the first phase, to conduct the project in thenorthern provinces of Nam Dinh, Vinh Phuc, central city of Da Nang and MekongDelta city of Can Tho.
In the second phase,between 2018 and 2020, the project will be expanded to other provinces andcities nationwide.
The project aims totighten the control over prescriptions and selling prescribed drugs, to reduceantibiotic resistance, misuse and abuse.
According to a surveyrelated to antibiotic prescriptions at pharmacies in northern localities,awareness of residents about antibiotics and antibiotic resistance remains low,especially among those in rural areas.
In urban areas, 88 percentof antibiotics are sold without prescriptions, while it is 91 percent in ruralareas.
The latest informationreleased showed that some 30 percent of patients at the National Children’sHospital suffer from drug-resistant bacteria stemming from the improper use ofantibiotics.-VNA
VNA
