Abuse of pain relief drug Tramadol declines in Upper West 

The Upper West Regional Directorate of the Pharmacy Council says abuse of a pain relief drug Tramadol is declining in the region. 

The Council attributed the decline to intensive education on the negative effects of the drug and a clamp down on illegal dealers by the Council in collaboration with other key stakeholders.

Acting Upper West Regional Manager of the Council Lateef Agyei-Wiredu disclosed this in an interview with Radio Ghana at Wa.

Tramadol is a drug used to treat moderate or severe pain. Its wrongful use can cause difficulty in breathing or even death. However some youth in the Upper West Region have taken to the drug, administering it in over dose and mixing it with energy drinks to boost their morale and serve as aphrodisiac. 

This prompted the Regional Coordinating Council to establish a committee to deal with the menace. 

Six months of the existence of the committee what has changed about the situation. The Pharmacy Council is one of the members of the Committee. 

A visit by GBC’s Radio Ghana to some pharmacies in Wa to find out whether people are able to buy the drug without prescriptions revealed that now it will be difficult to buy Tramadol from a pharmacy without a valid prescription in Wa. 

It may however be easier and cheaper to buy it from those who deal in the drug illegally and secretly.

A Superintendent Pharmacist at Dourinaa Pharmacy Jacob Duorinaa said he dispenses the drug based on prescription because its misuse can be very devastating.

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