WARNING ON STEROIDS INJECTION SOLD TO COVID-19 PATIENTS

MBABANE – Be warned!

Frustrated emaSwati have been cautioned not to fall for over-the-counter medications sold under the guise that they could treat the coronavirus, with the latest one being an injection of steroids mixed with antibiotics by a local pharmacy. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Ministry of Health have warned the public not to dare buy over-the-counter COVID-19 medication without a doctor’s prescription. In fact, the ministry and WHO have condemned a local pharmacy for selling the injection doses which they claim treat COVID-19.
Each dose retails at E130. It is sold to patients diagnosed with the virus and those who have symptoms. The pharmacy, situated in Mbabane, is said to be selling a mixture of antibiotics and steroids known as corticosteroid to patients who have tested positive for COVID-19 and those who have symptoms as well as those who merely want to boost their immune system.

Injection

When this reporter visited the pharmacy yesterday, one of the pharmacists claimed that the injection helped in speeding up the recovery process for patients who had tested positive for the virus, while also boosting the immune system and minimising chances of death. He said a doctor’s prescription was not required before getting the injection. The pharmacy, whose name has been deliberately withheld, had a long queue this past weekend and it was gathered that a majority of the people had come to take the dosage. The pharmacist said the steroids were meant to open up the lungs and allow for free flow of oxygen, which was a necessity for people diagnosed with COVID-19 while the antibiotics were meant to protect against any bacterial infection that a patient may develop while under COVID-19 treatment.

He said they offered two doses a day for three days to people who had symptoms of COVID-19, which meant patients with symptoms pay up to E780. He further explained that they administered two doses for five days for patients who had tested positive for COVID-19 and this cost E1 300. “A doctor’s prescription is not necessary as long as you have the E130, we give you the injection,” said the pharmacist. The news of the pharmacy offering the injection dosage was also topical on social media, particularly on Facebook, where one user shared that she observed a long queue this past Sunday at the pharmacy and when she enquired, she was told that most of the people were queuing for the doses.

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