Cancer patients in the region are being duped by the owners of pharmacies. The lack of proper regulatory bodies to ensure sale of cancer drugs in the Tricity at reasonable price and a mandatory rate, is now haunting the cancer patients, by burning a big hole in their pockets.
On one hand, the medical stores situated in the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research are giving more pills to patients, rather than what is mentioned in the prescription of the institute, and on the other, owners of medical stores in General Medical College and Hospital Sector 32 are charging arbitrarily from the patient.
Jaswant Singh, a resident of Patiala said, “The doctors prescribed a week of medication for me, twice daily, which is even mentioned in my card, but when I went to the medical store situated in the new OPD of PGI, the shopkeeper handed me two full strips comprising 20 tablets. The owner refused to sell me only 14 tablets and I ended up buying 20.”
By forcefully selling more medicine, than what is mentioned in the prescription, the medical shop owners are minting money from the poor and needy patients who are already reeling under high financial burden due to cancer.
The patients even went to the Deputy Superintendent’s office situated in the new OPD building. Here also, they failed to get any relief as Vikash Mehendi, Dy Superintendent called the medical shop owner to take a note of the situation, but as usual only an enquiry has been marked.
In GMSH-32, the case is more interesting. The chemist sells medicines at different price to all patients visiting them. Recently a doctor prescribed a chemotherapy drug to a patient of a particular brand. When the patient went to buy the drug, he was offered the drug of same composition but of a different brand name.
The maximum retail price mentioned on the packet was around Rs 10, 000. However, the shopkeeper agreed to give discount on the drug of that particular brand and sold the medicine for Rs 3,450. The doctor who prescribed the medicine, refused to use the chemo-therapy drug of the brand, provided by the medical shop-owner, as it has more side effects.
The patient went back and demanded the drug mentioned in the prescription but the shopkeeper agreed to sell it only at MRP, without any discount. The patient who was out of money was disheartened and returned without buying the medicine as he didn’t have enough money. It was only after regular cancer patients, who are aware of this swindling by pharmacist, came to his rescue that he got the prescribed drug at a discounted price.
Paclitexal, a chemo drug is available for Rs 3,450, after discount, at the chemist shops situated inside the premises of GMSH-32, but when a patient bought it from a medical shop outside he got the same medicine for Rs 2,300, after discount. It clearly shows that the chemists in GMSH-32 are duping the patients of their money.
Atul Sachdev, Director Principal of GMSH-32 said, “I have got similar complaints and have asked the shop owners to display their rate list in front of the counters from where the medicines are sold. If anyone is not found abiding by this rule, step will be taken against them.”
Meanwhile Sunil Chaudhary, Drug Controller of UT said that they are helpless in the case when chemist are selling medicines at MRP, and nothing can be done on the discount. So the cancer patients are left to the mercy of the chemist shop owners.