'Fake' clinics closed in Sierra Leone
01/06/2009
A health official in Sierra Leone has announced that a group of clinics have been shut down for allegedly administering fake drugs.
Alimamy Turay, spokesperson for the Sierra Leone Pharmacy Board, revealed that a number of Egyptian-run centres have been closed as part of a clampdown on illegal practices in the country's medical sector.
"We investigated after receiving a number of complaints from patients being given fake drugs and sub-standard injections for the treatment of typhoid in at least nine clinics run by the Egyptians," the official said.
According to the Concord Times, at least four patients treated at the clinics reported feeling dizzy afterwards and needed to go for further medical help at another centre.
The news follows an announcement form the health ministry that it will be seeking to weed out unregistered doctors.
Meanwhile, the newspaper reported last week that deputy health minister Mohamed Daudis Koroma had revealed a programme of free treatments for chidren aged under five would begin over the weekend.
