PCN seals 531 premises for various offences in FCT
The national enforcement team of the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) has sealed 531 premises within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja for various practice offences.
NPC Director of Enforcement, Pharm. Stephen Esumobi, made this known over the weekend, at a press briefing in Abuja.
He disclosed that the premises sealed comprised of 90 pharmacies, 144 patent medicine shops and 297 illegal medicine shops.
Pharm. Esumobi stated that they were sealed for offences ranging from operating without registration with the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria, non-renewal of premises certificates, stocking and sale of medicine vendors, and wholesalers carrying out retail activities.
He further stated that the patent medicine shops were engaging in clinical practice, as well as running afoul of poor documentation, storage facilities, stocking of ethical products without the supervision of a pharmacist, superintendent pharmacist not residing in the FCT to properly supervise pharmaceutical activities within the premises, non-pharmacists having access to poison cupboard and in some cases dispensing substances of abuse in the absence of the pharmacist.
Pharm. Esumobi emphasised that some premises that were licensed were sealed because they found to be carrying out activities that impact negatively on public health.
He explained that vendors do not have the knowledge of the appropriate doses to be administered and how to handle the adverse reactions that could occur from the administration of such drugs neither do they have facilities to mitigate their effects.
Pharm. Esumobi assured Nigerians that PCN would continue to do all within its power to ensure that members of the public access medicines that would deliver optimal therapeutic benefits to them at minimal risks.
