Medicine Shortages 2024
IPU Medicine Shortages Survey 2024
- The IPU Medicines Shortages Survey is now live and can be accessed here. This survey is open to all registered pharmacists in Ireland and will remain open till Thursday, February 29. This is one of the most important surveys that the IPU runs every year, and the results of the survey will help support the IPU's advocacy work. Last year's survey allowed the IPU to advocate for the introduction of a medicine substitution protocol.
- Given the significant impact of medicine shortages on community pharmacists and the patients we serve, we are encouraging members to take the time to complete the survey and provide us with the much-needed information so that we can advocate for change.
IPU Medicine Shortages Survey 2023
- If you are interested in reading last year's survey results, you can access them here, along with an infographic of the topline results.
What’s next?
- The IPU committees are currently drafting a position paper on medicine shortages, which will include proactive solutions on how medicine shortages can be managed better in the Irish context, and they would greatly appreciate your help in filling out this survey to inform this publication.
- Significant work is underway both at a national and European level to tackle the growing issue of medicine shortages.
European Update on Medicine Shortages
- Medicine shortages are of significant concern at a European level as they are at a national level in Ireland, with most European countries reporting significant constraints on their medicine supply chains.
- In December 2023, PGEU conducted a survey of members to understand the worsening situation across Europe; the results of the survey were published early in 2024, and can be accessed here; the most significant statistic from this report is that each pharmacy across Europe now spends 9.5 hours per week managing shortages, this is a considerable increase on the 2022 figure which was 6.7 hours.
- In October 2023, the European Commission adopted a Communication on medicines shortages. This communication outlines a number of initiatives across the EU to help mitigate the problem of medicine shortages, some of which are listed below:
- Voluntary Solidarity Mechanism for medicines was launched in October 2023 to support Member States experiencing critical shortages. The scheme allows Member States to flag needs for a given medicine in critical shortage at the national level to other Member States so that they can indicate the availability of stock that could be redistributed.
- Defining a Union list of critical medicines - The Commission will publish a Union list of critical medicines, building on work with EMA and the Member States, as a first step to ensure the security of supply. This work began in 2023, and the first version of the Union list of critical medicines was published on 12 December 2023.
- Accelerating and anticipating the pharmaceutical reform to enhance the security of supply. The proposed reform of the pharmaceutical legislation introduces structural measures to improve the availability of medicines. Key elements include a new European alert system with earlier notification of shortages and withdrawals by companies, harmonised reporting criteria, mandatory shortage prevention plans and coordinated management of shortages by EMA. The reform would reinforce and strengthen companies’ obligation to ensure appropriate and continued supply.
