Hospital Acting Manager clarifies: Drug shortage is not management problem

_{The current drug shortage at the Madang Provincial Hospital is not a management issue, rather a systematic failure that has been ongoing since the beginning of the year.}

_{Hospital’s Acting Executive Manager, Jeremiah Johnmark said the critical shortage of essential medical drugs at the province’s premier hospital is due to a failure in the National Medicine Policy of 2014.}

_{The policy requires that all medicine procurement for the public health system shall remain a centralised function of the Government. The National Department of Health as the steward of the Health System shall take carriage of this function and ensure vital, essential and non- essential medicines are available in adequate quantities at all times.}

_{Procurement of medical supplies is a national function of the National Department of Health, and not the PHAs’ responsibility.}

_{“We only place monthly orders and the actual procurement is made by the National Department of Health (NDoH). We then collect our orders from the Area Medical Store in Lae, depending on the availability of drugs from the supplier and of course the actual payment by government.}

_{“Each month we place orders for a thousand items. So, in the first six months of 2026, (January to June), we’ve place orders for 6, 463 items. Sadly, we’ve only received 246 items, which is less than 5 percent of the total orders. The balance of it 6, 217, we have not received and we are still waiting.}

_{“In January, we only received 4. 17 % of the total 1000 items ordered, February only 2. 76 %, March - 2. 47 %, April- 4. 59 %, May- 4.84 %, and June 4%. Each month received less than 5 %. So, overall; we can say that that the hospital has only received 5 % of its total medical supplies for the first six months of 2026, whilst 95% is yet to be received.” Mr. Johnmark said.}

_{The Acting Manager clarified that the Madang Provincial Health Authority’s total budget for 2026 is K83 million.}

_{However; K54, 138, 000 is held back by the Finance Department in Waigani for Personnel Emoluments, which include salaries and wages, allowances, and other benefits. The total operational funds sent to the province is only K19, 720, 000. This amount is then divided between the three directorates- Corporate, Public Health and Curative Health, which the provincial hospital and district hospitals or health centres come under directly.}

_{“For this year, the hospital received only K9 million and this money is not for buying medicine. These funds cover the operational expenses, including power, water, casuals, patients’ rations, overtime, and doctors’ accommodation.}

_{“Accommodation in Madang is not cheap. Every year, MaPHA spends about K2. 7 million in rentals. So, for this year, K2. 7 of the K9 million is for rentals. Madang PHA does not have enough institutional houses and our doctors live in rented houses,” Mr. Johnmark said.}

_{He said this is the reality on the ground, adding every day is a struggle and that is why the doctors and senior management team met last week and resolved on the scale down so that whatever they have remaining can be used on emergency cases.}

_{Mr Johnmark appealed to the district MPs to support their district hospitals and health centres at this critical time as the hospital does not have the everyday medicines and consumables.}

_{Mr Johnmark believes the shortage of medical drugs is a nationwide issue and is not isolated to Madang, however; each province has its own challenges in how they are dealing with and managing their respective cases.}

_{Further, he stated, “The K9 million is not enough to run a level 5 facility like the Madang Provincial Hospital. If I have to buy all necessary supplies to run this hospital, I would need K600, 000 to K1 million monthly. But again, procurement is a national function.”}

_{The scale- down is indefinite, however; the management hopes that problem is resolved quickly and operations can go back to normal.}