The Ministry of Health has launched a project wherein by 2020, all pharmacies will be required to sell antibiotics only to patients carrying doctors’ prescriptions.

A drugstore in Ho Chi Minh City

The ministry will work with local health departments in the first phase, to conduct the project in the northern provinces of Nam Dinh, Vinh Phuc, central city of Da Nang and Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.

In the second phase, between 2018 and 2020, the project will be expanded to other provinces and cities nationwide.

The project aims to tighten the control over prescriptions and selling prescribed drugs, to reduce antibiotic resistance, misuse and abuse.

According to a survey related to antibiotic prescriptions at pharmacies in northern localities, awareness of residents about antibiotics and antibiotic resistance remains low, especially among those in rural areas.

In urban areas, 88 percent of antibiotics are sold without prescriptions, while it is 91 percent in rural areas.

The latest information released showed that some 30 percent of patients at the National Children’s Hospital suffer from drug-resistant bacteria stemming from the improper use of antibiotics.

VNA