Drug shortages worsening, pharmacists say.

Abstract

Pharmacists have successfully managed drug product shortages for many years, but the problem facing the profession today is unlike anything seen before. “The volume of shortages is extreme,” said Parwana Shah, associate director of inpatient pharmacy services for Penn-Presbyterian Medical Center in Philadelphia, PA. “It used to be 1 or 2 here and there, and we’d manage it. But now, every day there’s a different one.” Shah said recent drug product shortages are worsened by concurrent shortages of critical supplies, such as IV bags and needles, that are needed to administer medications. “We can’t even get the tubing so the nurses can hang the drugs,” Shah said, adding that the nurses must sometimes “push” medication doses through a syringe instead of using an infusion pump. “Every step of the way you’re hit with roadblocks,” she said. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), typical causes of shortages include manufacturing...