As of: March 6, 2024, 12:16 p.m
By: Andreas Beez
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Chief pharmacist at the University Hospital on the Right of the Isar: Dr.
Helmut Renz reports “daily surprises about which medication is missing”.
© Klinikum Rechts der Isar
There is a lack of medication in Munich, and pharmacists are moving heaven and earth to get medication for their patients.
Even Sankas are affected.
.
Munich pharmacist Dr.
Peter Sandmann: Over 100 items not available
Pharmacist Dr.
Peter Sandmann © private
Evil tongues are currently scoffing that everyday life in pharmacies is a bit reminiscent of the shortage economy in the former GDR: every day a different product is missing, dedicated employees have to put off customers until they can, with a lot of ingenuity, find a delivery or alternative products somewhere.
With one difference: today it's not about bananas or roof tiles, but about medicines, some of which are vital.
The daily hunt for medication annoys pharmacists, doctors and patients.
In our newspaper, experts analyze the delivery chaos and the background.
Pharmacist Eva Kreuzer-Bojko © Jantz
“We spend an incredible amount of time finding the right medicines for our patients, researching alternatives for hours, calling colleagues, wholesalers and doctors,” reports pharmacist Eva Kreuzer-Bojko – and her colleague Dr.
Peter Sandmann confirms: “There are over 100 items listed in my computer that we don't get.
We have a permanent super bottleneck.”
Munich's pharmacies lack statins, antibiotics, respiratory medications and psychotropic drugs
The big problem is that the delivery situation changes practically every day.
Sometimes certain statins (for high cholesterol levels) are not available, sometimes antibiotics and painkillers are missing, and the next day medicines for respiratory diseases or psychotropic drugs are missing.
“Almost every day you are faced with new surprises about what is currently not available or only available to a limited extent,” reports the chief pharmacist at the Rechts der Isar University Hospital, Dr.
Helmut Renz.
Necessity is the mother of invention – even in the frustrated medical profession.
“I've already brought parents together so they can share pill packs.
“After all, the little patients can’t just take a break from psychotropic drugs for a few days,” says a child psychologist.
In addition, cancer specialists report desperate patients who are worried about their medication.
A shortage of medication is making the work of the Munich emergency services more difficult
Emergency doctor Prof. Viktoria Bogner-Flatz © Dominik Gigler
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Even the emergency doctors are getting into more and more trouble.
“For example, there is a lack of medication to dissolve blood clots,” report the medical directors of the Munich emergency service, Professor Viktoria Bogner-Flatz and Dr.
Dominik Hinzmann.
“The medication shortage has become an ongoing issue and a challenge for us.” There is now a separate Bavaria-wide working group that is looking for solutions for the Sanka crews.
They range from the use of alternative remedies to the use of other pack sizes or dosage forms and dosages.
These changes can be tricky in the everyday life of the emergency services because everything often has to happen at lightning speed.
Munich university pharmacist explains: High cost pressure in the production of medicines in Germany
The reasons for the shortage are complex - but at least partly homemade.
“Germany was once the pharmacy of the world.
But that hasn't been the case for a long time because there is enormous cost pressure on medicines and production in Germany is expensive," analyzes university pharmacist Renz.
The cost pressure is leading to manufacturers merging production sites or relocating them abroad because labor is cheaper there, environmental regulations are perhaps less strictly controlled and approval processes are simpler and faster.
“This can mean that certain active ingredients are only manufactured in a single factory worldwide,” explains Renz.
“If there are problems in production, this active ingredient will no longer be available anywhere in the world - and with it all the medicines that are made from it.”
Delivery chaos: Munich pharmacists are fighting against it with great commitment
Meanwhile, Munich's pharmacists are trying hard to make up for the shortcomings.
“Our ultimate goal is to help all patients,” says Sandmann, who is also involved in the Bavarian Chamber of Pharmacists.
“That’s why we have been accepting for years that the organization and procurement of medicines has become part of our job.” Not in the GDR in the distant past, but in Munich – in 2024.