The Health Ministry’s new Materials Management Unit, at Diamond, East Bank Demerara is storing medical drugs and other materials at international standards, according to Health Minister Dr. Bheri Ramsaran, who says the delay in its construction forced government to rent storage from pharmaceuticals supplier New GPC.
The new 26,691 feet facility, which will be commissioned shortly, is electronically-managed and has all the prerequisites, including controlled temperature and fire response mechanisms such as smoke detectors and sprinklers,the Government Information Agency (GINA) said on Monday.
It is manned by trained personnel, who use the computerised data system to control the flow of goods, so that there is minimal storage time in the distribution of the drugs to the health facilities, it added, while noting that the bond was funded by donor agencies (about $375M) and by the government ($120M).
GINA said that while at the bond, the minister responded to questions regarding the health sector’s payment for storage space at the New GPC.
The minister said that the government undertook to build the new facility because the previous bond was an old building at Mud Flats, in Kingston, which did not have air
