Hospitals, pharmacies monitoring drug shortages
The natural disaster tore through medical manufacturing plants on the island in
Hospitals in southern
"We have in the past run out of some of the sizes we use, but we've been able to substitute with other sizes," said
Swapping in another size doesn't impact care, while the hospital has never run out of bags. Holden said the backlog requires diligent restocking before supply gets low.
"It's still an issue," she said. "We're just making sure we have enough inventory and placing orders every week because there's a backup."
Spokespersons from
"With a few exceptions, product availability for the most part has not been interrupted," Mayo in
"We are optimistic that we will be able to work through any associated issues as a result of this hurricane," the statement said.
Not all hospitals have felt the strain caused by a tightened IV bag market.
Hospitals in larger metros could be feeling the brunt of the strain. Some across the country sought alternatives to the IVs like nasal sprays to ration their bags. They also employed a procedure called "IV push," where nurses inject medication into the patients' IV line.
In a letter last month, the
"This shortage places
The list has shortened since then, but common drugs remain in shorter supply.
"It's coming back on line now," he said. "It's been basically in short supply or no supply for quite a while."
The short supply brought the price up for customers. When it wasn't available at all, pharmacists, doctors and customers found alternatives.
"For the most part the market took care of things, but it was a pain to put it mildly," Frost said. "It was a fairly dramatic impact in the
A drug for high blood pressure, atenolol, had a shortage even before the natural disaster. It can come in 25, 50 and 100 mg tablets, so if one wasn't available, the tablets had to be split.
Unlike any sticker shock experienced by patients buying their medication, the hurricane's impact at hospitals is more behind the scenes.
Holden said patients at River's Edge may not have even noticed there was a shortage.
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