The problem of medicine shortages remains high, with the latest Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU) annual survey revealing that every pharmacy in Ireland has been challenged by medicine shortages in the past four months. The IPU said this highlights the need to expedite the planned introduction of a serious shortage protocol under the Health Miscellaneous Bill for all molecules in short supply, and ensure that the legislation will be flexible enough to find solutions for patients.
The IPU Medicine Shortage Survey found that all pharmacists have experienced medicine shortages in the last four months with a considerable 57 per cent (60 per cent in 2023) of pharmacies experiencing more than 40 medicine shortages in that period.
Among the key findings of the IPU’s Medicine Shortage Survey are:
- 84 per cent of pharmacists expect this problem to increase over the next 12 months;
- Irish community pharmacists are spending more than four hours 37 minutes per week managing medicine shortages, work that often goes unnoticed and is not recompensed;
- 62 per cent believe that allocations imposed by manufacturers is the leading cause of medicine shortages.
Medicine shortages can have a serious impact on patients and their families according to Clare Fitzell, IPU’s Head of Strategic Policy. She said: “Behind each medicine that is in short supply are patients who need them for their health and wellbeing. Medications in short supply this year have included certain steroid creams used to treat eczema, ADHD medication, and Ozempic. Medicine availability issues have the potential to impact medical conditions and can create considerable stress and inconvenience to patients.
“Pharmacists are highly experienced and work with prescribers to source alternatives where required. However, this process is often time-consuming for healthcare providers and takes too long for patients.
“The amount of time spent by pharmacies on dealing with shortages has increased significantly since 2018. The average pharmacist spends four hours 37 minutes per week dealing with shortages, in 2018, five to 10 hours per month was more typical.
“There is no expectation that this problem will improve in the next year with 84 per cent of pharmacists surveyed predicting it will get worse,” said Ms Fitzell. “This is a global problem and therefore we must look at what Ireland can control and implement this rapidly. In particular, moves to introduce a Serious Shortage Protocol must be expedited to ensure effective use of healthcare professional resources.”
The Health Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2024 is currently before the Oireachtas. This will allow the Minister for Health to introduce a scheme where pharmacists can appropriate substitute medicines for patients without needing to revert to the prescribing doctor. “This should dramatically speed up the process for both pharmacists and prescribers and crucially will ensure that patients get appropriate medicines quicker.”
Concluding, Ms Fitzell said: “Medicine shortages are a growing and significant problem. The focus in Ireland should be to address what is in our own control and how we can best support patients. There are very obvious and beneficial proposals that can be introduced, and the patients of Ireland cannot afford for these to be delayed any longer.”
