Drug Shortages: 10TV

Hospitals around the country are working hard, dealing with drug shortages. At hospital systems like OhioHealth, pharmacy teams are finding workaround options, to avoid having it impact patient outcomes in a negative fashion.

"We have multiple drug shortages and I think the question is do we have a drug shortage problem and I think the answer is yes, " says Curt Passfume Junior, OhioHealth Vice President of Pharmacy Services told 10TV.

But behind the scenes, on a daily basis, and in rooms and on calls patients will never see is plenty of work to know what the supply is, when it will arrive, and how much of it will end up in the hands of doctors, nurses, and staff.

"We've been dealing with serious shortages for almost 20 years, and in the last 5 years, it's really been unprecedented," says Passafume Junior to 10TV.

To help with the changes in care, pharmacy teams have worked hard to educate frontline staff on what is happening day in and day out.  Being ahead of the game has proven to be a huge win for the teams, and obviously for the patient too.  Instead of a patient presenting with a certain ailment or issue, and getting what would be considered standard practice for treatment. Teams are now assessing what is happening, what is available, and what would work best.

In some cases, the new way of doing things with these shortages has worked so well, that teams will not go back to the old way of doing things, even when the shortages start to ease up a bit.

"If we haven't learned something from this, if we aren't better because of this, then that could be looked at as a missed opportunity for all of us," Passafume Jr. said. 

Passafume Jr. says, what has been critically important throughout these shortages, many caused by a very volatile hurricane season, is that while there increased conversations about pipelines, availability, and more, is that the patient is still getting quality care at local hospitals, despite the challenges.

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