Everything you need to know as Northern Ireland pharmacists warn of medicine shortages

Need to know

A growing shortage of essential medicines, including aspirin and co-codamol, could last until at least the summer

Everything you need to know as pharmacists in Northern Ireland have warned of a growing shortage of essential medicines, including aspirin and co-codamol which could last until at least the summer.

• Community Pharmacy NI (CPNI) says shortage is likely to last for several months
• Pharmacies may be forced to ration supplies of medicines to ensure patients have some supply and do not run out, potentially affecting on average 50 to 100 patients per pharmacy
• Pharmacies are trying to source stock for more than 100 common medicine lines that are in short supply
• As a result, patients may face delays, receive interim or reduced supplies, or be referred for alternative treatments
• CPNI says this will place additional workloads on pharmacies and also increase pressure on GP practices and out-of-hours services
• Patients are being strongly advised against self-selecting alternative medicines or altering doses without professional guidance, as this may be clinically inappropriate and, in some cases, harmful.
• In Northern Ireland, around 50,000 packs – or five million tablets – of co-codamol are dispensed each month to a population of fewer than two million people
• Another shortage is affecting specific low-dose, dissolvable aspirin used primarily as an anti-platelet medicine for patients at risk of stroke or heart attack
• The current shortages are being driven by global manufacturing and supply chain constraints
• The revelations emerged on Tuesday when representatives from CPNI addressed MLAs at Stormont
• Danny Donnelly MLA, who chairs of the All-Party Group on Community Pharmacy, said the warning was “very concerning” and called on the Health Minister to recognise “the severity of this issue” and work “with the local community pharmacy sector to reduce the impact and risks to patients”
• Gerard Greene, Chief Executive of Community Pharmacy NI is appealing to the public to be patient with pharmacy teams as they try to source medicines
• He said community pharmacies are “operating under sustained and increasing pressure”, adding that “the gap between medicine costs and reimbursement is widening, and pharmacies here are also struggling to pay medicine wholesaler bills and receive sufficient supply of many common medicines to meet patient need.”
• The Department of Health said it was “aware of a current supply issue for co-codamol 30/500mg tablets, which is affecting all parts of the United Kingdom”, and recognises this is “concerning for patients and the healthcare professionals”.
• A DoH spokesperson added: “The department is working closely with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the health service here to ensure that patients can continue to access appropriate treatments that meet their needs. It is important that people continue to order medicines in advance and in line with their GP practice policy and do not stockpile medicines, as this can put additional strain on the medicine supply chain.”

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