This week, the Ministry of Health, through its National Medicines and Food Administration (NMFA), is conducting a crucial nationwide campaign entitled ‘National Medicines Safety Week’ to galvanize profound and powerful action from every citizen”.
The campaign’s guiding theme is “We Can All Help Make Medicines Safer”. This motto underscores the fundamental truth that safety is a collective responsibility, demanding vigilant cooperation from healthcare professionals, regulators, and the public. To ensure this message reaches every citizen, the NMFA is deploying a massive public awareness drive that utilizes health facilities alongside traditional and social media. This national effort focuses on two core objectives: actively promoting the safe and rational use of medicines and, crucially, emphasizing that all side effects must be reported to healthcare providers immediately.
The Essential Pillars of Safe Medicines Use
Safe medicine use begins with strict adherence to instructions. Every patient must follow the directions given by a doctor or pharmacist, never modifying the dose or timing of their medicine. It is crucial always to complete the full course of treatment, even if symptoms disappear. Stopping early, especially with antibiotics, is dangerous as it can cause the disease to return and, critically, contributes to Antibiotic Resistance, making future infections difficult to treat. Patients must also pay close attention to the timing of food intake, as this factor directly affects drug absorption and overall safety.
A cornerstone of the campaign is the warning against self-medication: taking medicines without professional advice. Self-medication carries significant risks. It may delay correct care by treating the wrong illness, or an unprescribed drug can interact dangerously with other medicines patients are taking or with an existing medical condition. Furthermore, choosing an incorrect dosage could be ineffective or, worse, toxic. The simple rule is to always consult a healthcare provider before starting any new medicine.
The safety journey does not end when one leaves the pharmacy. Proper handling at home is essential. Medicines must be stored out of the sight and reach of children to prevent accidental poisoning. To preserve the drug’s quality, store medicines in a cool, dry place away from heat, light, and moisture. The steam and heat in a bathroom cabinet, for instance, can damage medications. You must also regularly check the expiry date, as expired medicines may be ineffective or actively harmful. The campaign also emphasizes environmentally sound disposal mechanisms. Medicines are never to be disposed of with household garbage, flushed down the toilet/sink, or buried in soil, as these practices pose significant health and environmental risks. The public is advised to return unused and expired medicines to community pharmacies or health facilities for safe disposal.
There is also a growing trend of using medicines for cosmetic purposes, primarily as skin-lightening agents and body enhancers. These products, often misused or sold illegally without a prescription, represent a profound danger. Many unauthorized skin-lightening agents contain potent steroids or toxic chemicals such as mercury and hydroquinone. Prolonged use of these can cause irreversible harm, including severe skin thinning, permanent dark patches, serious infections, and increased risk of cancer. When absorbed by the body, these substances can also damage vital organs, such as the liver and kidneys. Similarly, unprescribed body enhancers pose severe internal risks, often containing potent, uncontrolled doses of hormones that may lead to complications. The message here is unmistakable: Do not use prescription medicines for cosmetic alteration.
Medicine Adverse Effects: What to do when you encounter one?
The second primary goal of the campaign is to educate the public about Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs), commonly called ‘Side Effects.’ An ADR is any unexpected, unwanted, or harmful response that happens when a medicine is taken at a regular dose. These reactions can be minor, such as a rash or headache, or severe, such as anaphylaxis.
Patient vigilance becomes indispensable in this process. The Ministry of Health relies on public reports to maintain drug safety nationwide. When a patient reports an ADR, it serves as a crucial safety alert. This allows healthcare providers to quickly change treatment or dose (if deemed necessary) and prevent further harm. Furthermore, these collective patient reports empower the NMFA to detect previously unknown safety risks. This critical information leads to updated warnings, new prescribing rules, or even the removal of unsafe products from the Eritrean market.
The success and sustainability of this Medicines Safety Week, therefore, hinges on one principle: collective responsibility. Medicines safety is not solely the domain of the Ministry of Health; it is a vital partnership between every healthcare professional and every patient.
By actively adopting safe use of medicines — i.e., avoiding self-medication, adhering strictly to instructions, storing and disposing of medicines properly, avoiding using medicines for cosmetic purposes, and promptly reporting any medicine-related side effects to a healthcare provider — every citizen becomes a frontline advocate for medicine safety.
In conclusion, the importance of this campaign transcends the current week’s events. It must catalyse a long-term, continuous commitment to vigilance. By sustaining this partnership, we secure the promise that medicines in the market will always remain a safe and trusted means of wellbeing that benefits all Eritreans equally.