‘Personal medication’ policy may have caused rumor

Medical staff of the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. suspects that patients who misunderstood the “personal medication” policy might have caused the rumor that the hospital is running out of its supply of medication.

CHCC has assured the public that it has enough supplies of medication to treat its patients, dismissing rumors that are circulating in the community that they don’t have enough supply of medicines to treat its patients.

“We recognize that the inconsistent operating history of the hospital may make these rumors seem reasonable, but put simply, there is no shortage of medication at CHCC,” said CHCC public information officer Sami Birmingham-Babauta.

She said that it wasn’t clear where and when the rumors started circulating, and who spread it around.

The personal medication policy controls the patient’s use of medications they brought home while they were admitted at the Commonwealth Health Center. It’s a general rule at CHC that patients are not allowed to take medications they brought home while they were admitted at the hospital.

However, there are exceptions like when a patient has been accustomed to a specific brand of medication that’s not sold at the hospital’s pharmacy and another alternative is also not available.

Patients can also bring their medication given to them at the hospital in order for them to show it to their healthcare providers during their assessments.

“If a patient is admitted with their home supply of medication on hand and does not formally request to use their personal medication, it is secured by the nursing staff and returned to the patient at discharge,” said CHCC in a statement.

CHCC patients admitted in the hospital and those at the outpatient are always informed of their rights before being attended to at the hospital. Those utilizing the outpatient services can get a copy of their registration.

“Patients have the right to make a verbal complaint to a staff member present at the time of the issue or file a grievance with the hospital,” added CHCC in their statement released to members of the local media.

“Grievances forms can be obtained from the cashier on the main floor next to the emergency room registration and submitted into the box on the adjoining wall labeled ‘patient grievances.’”

CHCC is also encouraging the community to use the “contact us” section on the chcc.gov.mp website for questions, comments, and other concerns they would like to inform their officials.

All the concerns submitted on the website are reviewed by the staff and sent to the person that would address the issue.