DPHOs to get extra funds

Kathmandu, January 1

The Department of Health Services has allocated additional budget of Rs 25 million for district public health offices across the country to procure medicines. However, the amount to be given to each DPHO is yet to be decided.

The district public health offices fell short on maintaining medicines’ stock with the budget released earlier. Earlier this fiscal, the department had released about six million rupees to DPHOs and approximately Rs 36 million to 752 local bodies.

“We have started the process of allocating the fund. Making medicines freely available and maintaining their stock is necessary. So, we decided to allocate additional funds for district public health offices,” said Sagar Dahal, senior public health administrator, Primary Health Care Revitalisation Division, Teku.

Statistical Officer at PHCRD Surya Bahadur Khadka explained, “The health centres should buy medicines within the fourth month after the money is disbursed. The consumption of medicines depends on the demand, consumption and population of the geographical area. As the money allocated earlier was insufficient to stock up medicines, we have decided to allocate extra budget.”

However, the department has decided not to allocate funding to regional health centres as it’s difficult to properly manage regional health centres under the country’s provincial model ,” added Khadka.