DRUG SHORTAGES STILL AFFECT HEALTH SERVICES IN MOROBE

BY MARTHA LOUIS

HEALTH services in Morobe Province continue to struggle with severe drug and medical supply shortages, affecting hospitals and clinics, including Angau Memorial Hospital in Lae.

Morobe Provincial Health Authority (MoPHA) Board Chairman David Wissink said the problem is part of a wider national issue faced by all Provincial Health Authorities. He explained that since the direct shipment system to Angau started in late 2023, supplies have often arrived incorrectly.

“Orders delivered were not the ones we requested, and even when the right drugs came, they were not in the right quantities,” Wissink said.

He added that districts still depend on the Area Medical Store system, which causes more delays and confusion. “Sometimes supplies arrive late, or they are not what we ordered. MoPHA has had to use its own limited funds to buy extra drugs,” he said.

Wissink said financial support has been slow, with only half of the 2025 operations budget released so far. However, he confirmed that new drug shipments have arrived and are being distributed.

He also said Morobe will soon have its own Provincial Transit Medical Store at Angau to improve drug supply and coordination across the province.