File photo.

Government does not yet have time frames to tackle the problem of out of stock medicines but these will be released after an external audit is complete in six weeks' time.

Health Minister Godfrey Farrugia said today the audit will cover the procurement, storage and distribution of medicines.

The audit follows an internal review undertaken by the Health Ministry and a report by the Ombudsman last year.

Dr Farrugia said the external audit will not only give a clear picture of the current state of affairs but also map out the changes that have to be done to improve efficiency.

In an interview with The Sunday Times of Malta two weeks ago the minister ruled out introducing a payment system for free medicines.

The audit will also review the Pharmacy of Your Choice, a system by which free medicines are distributed through private community pharmacies.

"The audit will not only look at the problem of out of stock medicines but also the misuse and the dead stock," Dr Farrugia added.

He noted the POYC was costing 300 per cent more than the previous system that saw patients collecting their free medicine from hospital.

Dr Farrugia was speaking at the end of a visit by President George Abela to the POYC offices at St Luke's Hospital.

The minister reiterated that there was a debt of €32 million on medicines procured by the health service.

POYC chief executive Roseanne Camilleri said the scheme served 110,000 patients and handled between €1.4 million and €1.6 million in free medicines through 213 community pharmacies.

Talking about the emergency service at hospital, Dr Farrugia said changes will start to be implemented next month when the first batch of doctors will be engaged by the health service.

The changes will be rolled out over a period of months and will include a shift in the complement of doctors serving at the casualty department. "Patients should be treated by more experienced doctors with freshmen serving as back up," he said.

During the visit Dr Abela was presented with a painting by Noel Attard, an employee at POYC, for it to be included in the annual charity auction by the Community Chest Fund.