Forgot to pick up your chronic medication from the government clinic and now the pharmacy is closed? No problem. Centralised dispensing outlets are among a host of innovations planned by the Gauteng health department to improve service.GPs and private pharmacies will be able to register with central dispensing outlets, where patients can collect their medicine.Other plans include:• Prescription medicine dispensing machines in shopping centres;• Allowing certain retailers, including Dis-Chem, Shoprite and Clicks, to dispense repeat chronic medication to state patients; and• An Uber-style ambulance service that will allow patients to track their ambulance.Gauteng health MEC Qedani Mahlangu said that enabling patients to collect their medication from retailers would remove 70% of the people crowding state hospitals every day."Hospitals are meant to deal with emergencies and not stable patients. The space will allow hospitals to better manage their facilities and focus on cleanliness and planning," she said.Distribution of chronic medication has been a serious strain on the department, which services the biggest population in South Africa.Patients arrive at state hospitals and clinics from 2am to be first in the queue. Even so, some leave empty-handed due to inefficiencies in the system.Mahlangu said the idea to use retailers had been inspired by observing the number of people moving in and out of Park Station in Joburg's city centre.About a million people use this facility to take buses, trains and the Gautrain."We are responding to people who are working, eliminating the time they waste waiting for their medication."Patients will be able to collect their medication at any time of the day as the Dis-Chem will be open from the time the first train arrives at Park Station and will close when the last train arrives," Mahlangu said.story_article_left1About four million people receive chronic medication from public health facilities in Gauteng and these numbers are increasing due to migration.Most patients receive medication for TB, HIV-related illnesses, heart conditions, back problems, high blood pressure and diabetes.The new plan will be rolled out throughout the province.Regarding medicine dispensing in shopping centres, patients will be given a pin code that can be punched into an ATM-type machine. A pharmacist will interact with the patient through a video link, culminating in the machine dispensing medicine.Gauteng health services will also adopt an Uber-like system to run its ambulance services, which Mahlangu said was critical in changing the health system in the province."With the Uber model you will be able to see where the ambulance is and track its movements as well as the driver. We want to respond faster and in particular reduce maternal fatalities due to excessive bleeding and response times."The project, using 70 ambulances, will go live in May.Andy Gray, senior pharmacology lecturer at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, said: "Doing this is not only a good idea, it's crucial to being able to harness underutilised resources as part of national health insurance."..