– It was in January or February. And no matter which pharmacy I went to, they said it’s sold out and it won’t be available again. Maybe not until June. Now it has come again. That’s what Charlotte Høy says, one of many who have experienced the drug shortage recently. Charlotte Høy has herself experienced a medicine shortage and is worried about the development. Photo: Ismail Burak Akkan She expresses particular concern for those who are completely dependent on medicine they lack, such as diabetics. – There are different types of diabetes medication. Maybe you can’t stand one, so you have to have the other. If it is not on the market, then I would have panicked a bit, I would have traveled to Sweden or invented something. Kim Andre Fladvad Karlsen, pharmacist at Apotek 1 Hygiea Oslo, tells news that they experience every day that they cannot get goods from the wholesaler. – It will come next week, in three weeks, even at the end of the year, he says. A recent report from the Pharmacy Association shows that 97 per cent of Norwegians receive what they need at the pharmacy immediately. Nevertheless, thousands of Norwegians are affected by drug shortages every month. – It is frustrating for many. It puts them in a difficult situation, says the pharmacist. Kim Andre Fladvad Karlsen says that they at Apotek 1 in Oslo experience medicine shortages every day. Photo: Ismail Burak Akkan Have to leave the pharmacy empty-handed 49 Norwegian pharmacies took part in the survey, which is based on four weeks in March 2024. It showed that 3 per cent of those who visited the pharmacy with a prescription did not receive the medicine the doctor had prescribed. These had to either wait for the product to be ordered, get other options, go to another pharmacy – or go home without any solution. In 1.7 per cent of the cases, the item was also not in stock at the supplier. Professional director of the Apotekforeningen, Hanne Andresen. Photo: Kubrix / Apotekforeningen – In summary, the survey indicates that in 350,000-550,000 cases annually, patients have to leave the pharmacy empty-handed, says director of the Apotekforeningen, Hanne Andresen. Andresen says that patients do not experience drug shortages any more now than five years ago. Nevertheless, drug shortages must not be trivialised, emphasizes the specialist director. – Drug shortages lead to insecurity, frustration and, in some cases, also to the deterioration of the state of health. These medicines were the most missing A 214 454 prescription sales between 4 and 31 March at the 49 pharmacies, there were 6470 cases where they could not deliver specific medicines to the customer. The medicines that were most often reported to be in short supply in the survey were: · Zopiclone (including Imovane) · Fluticasone furoate (Avamys) · Estradiol (including Estradot) · Methylphenidate (including Delmosart) · Phenoxymethylpenicillin (including a. Apocillin) · Semaglutide (including Ozempic) Missing various medicines Among the medicines that were most missing were other sleeping pills, hormone preparations, ADHD medicine and slimming medicine. This applies to, among other things, the slimming injection Ozempic and hormone patches such as Estradot. – There has been a great shortage of Ozempic for a long time. We also notice a major shortage of hormone preparations, as we have a gynecology clinic nearby. There are delivery difficulties for plasters, gels and sprays, says Karlsen at Apotek 1. – We can send most of them to another pharmacy. But the question is whether the customer wants to go to the other side of town for the one item, whether they want to see the doctor for alternatives, or just wait until it arrives in stock. Lack of medicine is a challenge both in Norway and the rest of Europe. According to the Directorate for Medical Products, the problems are most often due to challenges with production, a shortage of raw materials or a larger request than expected. Creates extra work Wars and conflicts in the world are among the reasons that make it difficult to produce medicines and transport them across national borders. The shortage also creates extra work for the pharmacies, which have to look for other solutions for the patients. On average, they spend an extra three minutes on each case, according to the Apotekforeningen’s report. Drug shortages are a global challenge that in recent years have affected patients and pharmacies to an increasingly large extent. Photo: ISMAIL BURAK AKKAN / news This corresponds to increased personnel costs of NOK 60 million a year. Kim Andre Karlsen at Apotek 1 misses more specific reasons for the shortage of the individual medicines. He calls for better emergency stocks and better dialogue with the producers. – I hope there will be better preparedness and information for both us and the customers. Because they are the ones who are left without the medicine they need. Does Norway not prioritize Ingrid Aas, senior physician in the Directorate for Medical Products, says that many of the shortages are due to commercial priorities on the part of the pharmaceutical companies. Among other things, she highlights the allergy medicine Avamys and hormone patches. Senior doctor Ingrid Aas says that various measures are being taken both at national and European level to solve the drug shortage. Photo: STATENS LEGEMIDDELVERK – There it is simply the case that the supplier has said that they do not prioritize delivering goods to the Norwegian market, which is relatively small. Other markets are bigger and more interesting, probably, says Aas. The supervisor also highlights production and logistics challenges as frequent reasons why suppliers report supply problems. – After all, production is both complex and global. From raw material to finished product in Norway, there are many stages where things can potentially go wrong, she says. – Can the shortage be expected to continue? – We see this as a challenge that is here to stay, at least in the short term. If you look further ahead, you can hope that all the new initiatives both at European and national level will make the delivery situation better and more stable, says Aas. Published 19.06.2024, at 13.57 Updated 19.06.2024, at 14.12
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Shortage of medicines – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
