Medicine Dispenser at Medecins Sans Frontieres

Responsibilities

• Dispensing medication to patients according to medical prescription, ensuring the medication is labelled with the correct drug name, strength, quantity, expiry date, directions for use and additional required information, and providing clear instructions and advice on how to take the drug, when, for how long, how to store it, possible side effects, and any other relevant warnings. Making sure the patient understands in order to ensure correct treatment.
• Adhering to MSF practice policies and procedures for dispensing medicines, particularly those relating to controlled drugs, and ensuring respect for confidentiality in dispensing.
• Placing accurate and timely orders with the central stock, maintaining minimum stock levels of medicines, checking expiry dates and storage conditions, and ensuring no medicines or materials are taken out of the dispensary without authorization.
• Maintaining accurate dispensing records and regularly reporting them to his/her technical reference. Ensuring returned and out-of-date medication is safely removed to a well-designated quarantine zone for unwanted pharmaceuticals, separated from normal stock.
• Organizing and keeping the dispensing area clean, ensuring cleanliness and care in handling medicines to avoid contamination and mix-up. Maintaining dispensary equipment, ensuring it is clean, accurate, and in a good state of repair.
• Maintaining the integrity and security of the dispensary by admitting only authorized personnel and ensuring that all medicines are stored appropriately. Reporting immediately to the technical reference any problem arising in the service, especially loss, robbery, quality problems with medicines (abnormal changes in colour, consistency, and odour), or damage to medical equipment or medicines.
• Carrying out Patient Therapeutic Education (PTE) and interacting with patients using a patient-based approach to support chronic disease (HIV, TB, etc.) patients during their visits. Receiving patients, informing them about treatment and adherence, giving appointments for the next drug delivery, informing the medical doctor in case of lack of adherence, identifying the reasons, and finding solutions to improve adherence.
• Understanding, recording, and reporting any complaints received from patients related to medicine use or side effects.

MSF Context-Specific Accountabilities

• Dispensing medication to designated End User Units (EUUs) according to medical prescription, ensuring the medication is labelled with the correct drug name, strength, quantity, expiry date, and directions for use. Ensuring adequate daily supply to the specific EUUs and confirming that nursing staff understand the frequency and correct administration to guarantee proper treatment of hospitalized patients.
• Ensuring the rational use of antibiotics at end-user level.
• Ensuring adequate stock in emergency-use cupboards within the EUUs to avoid disruption to patient care outside regular pharmacy hours.
• Ensuring cleanliness of the dispensary environment according to GDPS and IPC measures.
• Providing clear explanations to each patient presenting at the dispensary on utilization, dosage, mode of administration, posology, side effects, and adverse reactions, and verifying understanding of the prescribed treatment.
• Ensuring good communication and collaboration between the dispensary and other departments (MSF or Ministry of Health).
• Ensuring appropriate recording of consumption and discrepancies, participating in inventories, reporting any concerns in a timely manner to the Supervisor/Manager, and participating in ordering processes according to needs.
• Supporting the Main Pharmacy when required.
• Supporting other tasks and responsibilities according to the needs of the dispensary and based on supervisor/manager-identified gaps.