Masvingo General Hospital medical superintendent Dr. Noel Zulu has suspended 17 workers after an audit revealed that some medicines were missing from the hospital pharmacy.
Masvingo Provincial Medical Director (PMD) Dr. Amadeus Shamhu confirmed the development to the Sunday News. He said:
I can confirm that 17 staffers with access to the pharmacy have been suspended from work after an audit revealed that some medicines are missing. We do not have value for the missing medicines.
The suspended staffers include nurses, general hands, and drivers.
The workers were initially suspended from duty for 14 days with benefits on 16 January 2023.
On 19 January, they were summoned to a hearing and sent on forced leave on 8 February.
A memo dated 8 February and signed by Dr. Zulu says investigations into the matter will be completed within the shortest possible time. Reads the memo:
Following your 14-day suspension from duty and its expiry thereto on 3 February 2023, you were supposed to report for work on 06 February 2023, however, the investigation process is still ongoing.
As such, you are hereby put on forced leave with full benefits until the investigations are completed.
We hope this investigation should be completed within the shortest possible time.
One of the affected workers, speaking to the Sunday News on condition of anonymity, said no audit was conducted but a routine medicine-level check. Said the employee:
Dr Zulu suspended us but no audit was carried out, it was just a regular medicine level check by one pharmacist and he never asked us what happened to the stocks. They cannot say it was an audit.
We share medicines with other hospitals and furthermore, we were supposed to have been suspended by the human resources officer and not the medical superintendent.