2024-03-05 14:59:19
Only one 24/7 pharmacy in the entire area. Such is the situation in the Blagoevgrad region, where people have to walk tens of kilometers at night, in urgent need of medication.
One of the reasons why there are no more 24-hour pharmacies is the lack of pharmacists who agree to work night shifts. A new mechanism has also been in effect since January, where pharmacies can apply for funding to provide additional remuneration for pharmacists who work at night.
According to data from the pharmacy card, in addition to Blagoevgrad, there is a need for a 24-hour pharmacy due to the large population in the cities of Petrich and Sandanski. In Hadjidimovo, Bansko and Garmen, there are pharmacies with a status similar to 24/7, but they are not open all the time. Because of this, people from Sandanski, for example, travel 60 kilometers to Blagoevgrad in an emergency.
“It’s inconvenient, of course, we need a night pharmacy, because everything happens at night, especially for small children,” shared a resident of the district.
“You know, at night the child raises a fever or you don’t have anything, you have to go to a 24-hour pharmacy, when we come here I bring a first aid kit for my child, I stock up,” explains another.
The problem with a lack of 24-hour pharmacies in the district comes from the fact that there are many sites, therefore there is a lack of pharmacists to work in them. There are even fewer specialists who would provide systematic night shifts.
“It is very difficult, you understand, for the pharmacy to support this activity by itself, due to a number of reasons, the reduction of drug prices. Markings have not been touched since 2009 as a percentage, there is almost nothing left in the pharmacies, when there is nothing left, revenues are reduced. In the field, it is very difficult to convince these people to work the night shift,” said the deputy chairman of the Pharmaceutical College-Blagoevgrad, Dr. Konstantin Kachulev.
An additional BGN 9 million will be allocated according to a new methodology to pharmacies that operate in hard-to-reach areas or work around the clock. Thus, pharmacies can provide a financial incentive to work at night.
“The new contract is from January, that is, we are still waiting to see the data from new pharmacies that applied according to the methodology. I really hope that the colleagues from Petrich and Sandanski will look at this possibility and provide such a service around the clock, I think it can be found potential”, explained the secretary of the Bulgarian Pharmaceutical Union Svetoslav Krumov.
Thanks to a public-private partnership with the municipality, Blagoevgrad has had a 24-hour pharmacy for more than a year. People from 2 districts rely on it, BNT reports. The Blagoevgrad Regional Pharmaceutical College has also held talks with the municipality of Petrich, so that a 24-hour pharmacy can start working there as soon as possible. The people of Sandanski can also count on her.