Alarming reports are starting to emerge from clinics across the country about the conditions that South Africans are facing when they collect their medication.
In some places, people are asked to wait outside the clinic and are handed their medication through the fence when their name is called out. In other clinics, people wait for hours in crowded waiting areas with no provision made for social (physical) distancing.
This situation has caused many people to decide not to collect their medication for fear of getting COVID-19 while at the clinic. Others are asking whether there is a way to get their chronic medication more safely.
Luckily for people with a chronic condition like high blood pressure, diabetes or HIV (plus a range of other common conditions), there is a better way to collect your medication.
The free service is called CCMDD, or as we like to call it ‘Get Checked. Go Collect’, and it gives people with a chronic condition who are stable on their medication the opportunity to collect their government-issued medicine supplies from over convenient 200 pick-up points around Durban.
The service has many advantages which are even more beneficial during the COVID-19 pandemic, as you are able to avoid crowded places that may place you at greater risk of infection.
Benefits include:
- CCMDD offers a network of pick-up points that are convenient and easy to get to.
- You can avoid crowded clinics especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- There is no need to travel long distances on public transport, which further reduces your exposure to large groups of people – and saves you time and money.
- You can collect a three-month supply of medication at once.
- You can nominate two people, like family members, to collect your medication for you. This is useful for older people, patients who are not mobile, and those with weaker immune systems at increased risk of COVID-19 infection.
- There are seldom medicine stock-outs, so you can maintain your treatment and keep your condition stable.
- Easier access to your medicine supplies make it much easier to adhere to your medication, which is vital for keeping your immune system strong so that it can fight off a possible COVID-19 infection.
The service is free and once registered, you would have to visit the clinic only twice a year to complete your blood tests and renew your prescription.
Another great benefit is that the medication comes in a sealed box, so your condition remains private. Also, you can collect your medication from pick-up points like Dis-Chem, Clicks and Pick ‘n Pay, which offer longer opening hours.
To find out more, click here or ask your nurse about registering on CCMDD today and start enjoying the convenient collection service that over 300 000 people in Durban are using.
