Hyderabad: Pharmacies to tip off on buyers of flu medicines

Hyderabad: Hyderabad: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has tied up with local medical stores to access the data of customers who are purchasing fever, cough and flu medicines regularly.

GHMC strictly instructed pharmacies not to sell medicines without doctors' prescriptions. "We held a meeting with all medical shop owners and all the pharmacists of the entire Chandhanagar Circle.

We instructed them to submit a daily report of customers purchasing medicines for flu, fever, cough or any other ailment, whose symptoms nearly match those of COVID 19 patients. This will help GHMC track the suspect cases.

Self-medication is strictly prohibited and action will be taken if any medical stores supply medicines without prescription. In this extreme crisis of Corona, maintaining self-isolation and following lockdown norms will only help to save ourselves," said Ravi, AMOH, GHMC, Chandhanagar.

Now, all medical store owners and employees in medical stores and pharmacies and everyone in the field of selling medicines will act as informants to aid in tracking the suspected Corona virus patients.

"Self-medication in the times of Corona virus is amounts to exposing one to danger. Many people are said to be purchasing Paracetamol, Coldact and other cough pills without prescriptions.

As situation is turning serious in the state, we are also scared of selling those medicines without prescription.

Moreover, GHMC instructed medical stores not to sell any medicine without proper prescription of recognized doctor and we will not be encouraging self-medication anymore," said R M Naidu, Apollo Pharmacy, Gachibowli.

The Municipal and Urban Development Department on Saturday asked the top brass of all corporations and urban local bodies to conduct meetings with medical shop owners to enlist their support in tracing anybody purchasing medicines to treat any symptoms as in Covid patients or suspects.

"Regularly we sell Paracetamol and other cold tablets without any prescription. We usually observe 10 to 15 customers purchasing Coldact tablets; however, now due to COVID19 fear, more people are purchasing to prevent infections.

Yesterday, GHMC officials conducted a meet and asked us to provide regular information about customers who are purchasing medicines for flu and we are registering their details to submit to officials," informed G V Sathyanarayana, Adithya Medical store, Miyapur.