Drug Shortages: More than Just Background Noise

The Canadian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy (CJHP) first published an editorial regarding drug shortages in 2012.1 Almost 7 years later, this issue of CJHP includes a study comparing several aspects of drug shortages among Canada and 4 European countries, serving to remind us that the drug shortage problem is far from resolved. Videau and others2 found that across all 5 study sites, drug shortages occurred on a daily basis, predominantly affecting injectable products. Furthermore, shortages could be prolonged: in the Canadian study hospital, the median duration was 32 days, but shortages could last longer than a year, with the longest reported shortage being 402 days.2 These data are consistent with those reported by Drug Shortages Canada, which currently (as of early 2018) estimates about 300 shortages, affecting vaccines, chemotherapeutic agents, antibiotics, and other drugs commonly used in the hospital setting.3 Indeed, drug shortages have become so commonplace that some pharmacists have come to consider this issue as the “background noise” of today’s hospital pharmacy practice (Stephen Shalansky, Providence Healthcare, Lower Mainland Pharmacy Services; personal communication, November 8, 2018)