On 07 May 2024, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGDA) in a national workshop held on its premises with DGDA officials from across the country, finalized the Accreditation Guideline for the Model Medicine Shops (MMSs)/Model Pharmacies (MPs). Major General Mohammad Yousuf, the Director General of Drug Administration chaired the workshop. The MMSs/MPs are medicine shops that receive formal DGDA accreditation, which requires meeting the standards given by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of Bangladesh. Management Sciences for Health’s Better Health in Bangladesh (BHB) project, with support from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO), provides technical assistance to the ministry to develop the MMSs/MPs standards.
The accreditation of a medicine shop requires several steps. First, medicine shops are assessed for three minimum criteria, viz., availability of a valid drug license issued by the DGDA, a pharmacy professional registered by the Pharmacy Council of Bangladesh (PCB), and minimum floor space. Second, the shop’s dispenser is trained on Good Pharmacy Practice (GPP). Third, after the medicine dispenser works to meet the accreditation standards, a district DGDA official inspects the medicine shop, and if criteria are met, the medicine shop is accredited as either an MP or an MMS, depending on the standards met.
A committee headed by Md. Eyahya, the Director of DGDA, facilitated the guideline development. BHB prepared the initial draft, and the committee of DGDA officials met four times between 15 November 2023 and 22 January 2024 to discuss and receive and incorporate feedback. The committee held a national workshop on 07 May 2024 and finalized the accreditation guideline.
