EAHP’s 2014 medicines shortages report now published

On 17 November 2014, EAHP launched its latest report on medicines shortages in European hospitals at an event for patient organisations, academia, national governments, EU institutions and representatives of the pharmaceutical industry.

The report was the result of a survey of more than 600 hospital pharmacists in over 30 countries, making it the largest known investigation of its kind. Headline findings include:

• 86% of hospital pharmacists report that medicines shortages are a current problem in the hospital they work in, in terms of providing the best care to patients and/or operating the hospital pharmacy
• 66% of respondents say that medicines shortages affect their hospital pharmacy on a daily or weekly basis
• Antimicrobial agents, oncology products, emergency medicines, cardiovascular medicines and anaesthetic agents are the top affected categories
• 75% of hospital pharmacists either agreed or strongly agreed with the statement “medicines shortages in my hospital are having a negative impact on patient care”
• 63% of hospital pharmacists estimate that the typical medicines shortage normally lasts for a number of weeks
• Reported impacts for patients include delayed or interrupted chemotherapy treatment, unnecessary experience by patients of side effects, heightened clostridium difficile risk and deterioration in patients’ conditions.

The report in full can be accessed HERE.

Press release can be found HERE.

Launched at Brussels Press Club at an event chaired by Ilaria Passarani, Head of the Food and Health Department at the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC), the event included presentations from:

• Dr Roberto Frontini, EAHP President and Director of Pharmacy at the University Hospital of Leipzig in Germany (Presentation HERE)
• Francois Houyez, Treatment Information and Access Director and Health Policy advisor at Rare Diseases Europe (Eurordis) (Presentation HERE)
• Kim Pauwels, Phd student at the Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapy Department of KU Leuven University, Belgium, and lead author of research article “Drug shortages in European countries: a trade-off between market attractiveness and cost containment?”. The article can be accessed in full HERE. (Presentation HERE)