On Monday, Fiji's Health Ministry said "IV fluids are not out of stock". Photo: 123RF
Reports of medical supply shortages in Fiji have led to a stand-off between health workers and the government.
The Fiji Medical Association (FMA) and the International Women's Association (IWA) Fiji say products, such as IV fluids and oxygen tubing, have been severely limited in the country's public health system.
The shortage has had a huge impact on workers, patients, and their families, with some individuals forced to purchase their own IV fluid bags for hospital treatment, according to the organisations.
However, the Fijian government has dismissed claims of supply problems, labelling them as "misinformation".
FMA president Dr Alipate Vakamocea told RNZ Pacific the government's reaction demonstrates how out of touch Fiji's lawmakers are.
Describing conditions on the frontline, he said doctors were being forced to reuse products only supposed to be used once.
"You know how you've got a child attached to a ventilator, we'll take the oxygen tubing [when finished with treatment]. It's supposed to be one-use, and you're supposed to chuck it away. We're cleaning it and reusing it.
"That's the level of issues that our staff are facing on the ground."
IWA Fiji, a not-for-profit focused on women's and children's rights, said it stepped in to secure saline bags for the Colonial War Memorial Children's Hospital in the capital, Suva, this week due to the supply shortage.
The association's president Judy Compain told the Fiji Sun that the current state of affairs was "deeply concerning".
She urged the government to be more transparent, particularly as patients were being asked to buy their own IV fluids.
Currently, the cost of one IV bag is between FJ$4 and $7. While the number of bags used per patient varies depending on their condition, Dr Vakamocea said generally at least three bags are used if a patient required IV fluids.
Colonial War Memorial Hospital in Suva Photo: Doctors Assisting in South Pacific Islands
The Health Ministry has issued several statements addressing reports of supply problems.
On Monday, it said "IV fluids are not out of stock".
It also said Dr Vakamocea needed to check his facts before causing panic and fear in the public.
Dr Vakamocea gave an equally strong rebuttal and insisted the government and its Health Ministry needed to face facts.
He said information provided by the Health Ministry on its IV stock does not add up.
According to the Health Ministry figures, it had received 3000 units of saline solution over the previous week. It also expected to receive a further 4200 units.
The amount of saline the Ministry says it has on hand would likely be used within a few days at the country's main hospital, Dr Vakamocea said.
The hospital had about 450 beds "and that's the stock for the entire country," he added.
On Wednesday, the Ministry shared a video slideshow on Facebook showing Fiji Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Services (FPBS) staff moving medical supplies.
"Despite the negative commentary in the media, the Ministry of Health and Medical Services remains committed to delivering critical medicines to our healthcare facilities across the country," the accompanying text in the post said.
'When you got inefficiencies in health, it leads to death'
Last month, one of the country's deputy prime ministers, Manoa Kamikamica, admitted that "there was a mess in the health system".
He told Pacific Waves that the government had to reach out to its development partners, who "told us that the health system is not adequate for Fiji, it is actually very poor".
Dr Vakamocea believes the solution to the ongoing health product shortage lay in fixing the government's poor supply and drug-purchasing processes, particularly because private facilities had not experienced shortages.
"The issue that we're facing here in Fiji is the shortage seems to be within the Ministry of Health alone. If you look at other private hospitals, [and] the public-private partnership in Lautoka with Aspen Hospital, they do not have a shortage.
"In fact, it has reached the point where doctors in [the public] hospital are writing prescriptions for patients to go and purchase it from private pharmacies."
Dr Vakamocea said the government needed to do something before more serious problems like patient deaths occurred.
"A newer, efficient system [should be] created just for the Ministry of Health so that we can do our purchases on time. Because when you got inefficiencies in health, it leads to death, basically, and morbidity or mortality."
RNZ Pacific has contacted the Fijian government for comment.
