A workshop on opioid accessibility for the state of Chhattisgarh
Pallium India organized a virtual workshop on opioid accessibility for the state of Chhattisgarh on December 27, 2023 with the collaboration of Control food and Drug Administration, Chhattisgarh.
Dr. Shilpa Khanna from Sangwari, collaborating partner of Pallium India, introduced the participants; Ms. Shalini AJ, National Head – Facilitation from Pallium India, coordinated the program; and Syed Askari, Regional Facilitator from Pallium India, welcomed each of them. Dr. M.R. Rajagopal, Chairman Emirates of Pallium India, led the program with his session.
The following participants joined the workshop:
From the Drug Controller’s office:
- Mr. Beni Ram Sahu,Asst. Drug Controller
- Mr. Om Prakash Yadav, Drug Inspector
- Mr. Prasant Lal, Drug Inspector
- Dr.Ashish Pandey, Drug Inspector
- Ashwani Kumar, Drug Inspector
- Mr. Chandra Kala Thakur, Drug Inspector
- Mr. Sukhchain Singh, Drug Inspector, Kondagaon
- Mr. Vijay Kumar, Drug Inspector, Raigarh
- Dr. Deepak Jaiswal, District Nodal Officer Palliative Care
- Mr. Anil Kumar, Drug Inspector, Surguja
- Mr. Ramila Bhagat, Asst. Drug Controller
Including the above mentioned government officials, there was a total of sixty seven participants.
Dr. M.R. Rajagopal talked about the need of opioids for palliative care and shared the necessary documents and application forms for RMI status with the participants. He also explained that the licensing procedure through the Excise department is no longer valid; the certificate needed to procure opioids is issued by the State Drug Controller only. The state Drug Controller’s office will issue the RMI (Recognized Medical Institution) certificate which allows the procurement of six drugs, out of which three are available in India-morphine, methadone, and fentanyl).
Dr. Rajagopal explained that government hospitals are deemed RMIs and do not require certification from the SDC. However, he also stated that even with this exemption, government hospitals are required to maintain all of their documentation updated in accordance with the NDPS 2014 amendment.
Dr. Shilpa Khanna offered her full support to share their documentation around morphine sticks and how do they manage the stocking & procurement in various formulation at Ambikapur in Surguja district, both at a medical college and an urban primary health center.
The participants also shared that more palliative care training was necessary for nurses, doctors, and social workers in the state.
Pallium India would like to thank the Chhattisgarh Drug Controller’s office, Sangwari team and all participants for their active participation in the workshop and for committing themselves to a pain free state of Chhattisgarh.
(Report prepared by Syed Askari, Regional Facilitator, Pallium India.)
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