EAHP launches Medicines Shortage Survey to improve patient outcomes

19 March 2018

The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP) is pleased to announce the launch of the 2018 survey on medicines shortages!

EAHP has been advocating on the issue of medicines shortages and its threat to patient care in hospitals and overall patient safety for a number of years. In 2014, EAHP released a report on Medicines Shortages in European Hospitals (report available HERE), the first European-wide survey conducted to address the issue of medicines shortages.

Since data on the prevalence, nature and impact for patient care of medicines supply shortages is still lacking, EAHP saw a need to launch a follow-up investigation. The survey, which is going to be launched today, aims at providing a clearer picture on the impact that medicines shortages have had on the work carried out by hospital pharmacists. To this end the survey will gather data on:

• The current nature of medicines shortages problems in Europe, including their prevalence;
• The most common types of shortages;
• Their impact on patient care and hospital pharmacy services;
• Existing national mechanisms for dealing with or monitoring shortages;
• How hospital pharmacists typically manage the problems shortages cause; and,
• Hospital pharmacist views on proposed policy solutions.

Through the collection of data on the prevalence of shortages, types of shortages and length of shortages, EAHP aspires to contribute to charting the current challenges hospital pharmacists face due to medicines shortages with an updated analytical report.

The survey will be open from 19th March 2018 to 11th June 2018 to collect information from European hospital pharmacists on the shortage situation in their respective countries. Interested hospital pharmacists can participate via the following LINK

ENDS

For further information contact info[at]eahp[dot]eu | 00 322 669 2513

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP) is an association of national organisations across 35 countries representing hospital pharmacists at European and international levels. More information about the EAHP and its history here.

2. Information about EAHP's advocacy work on medicines shortages here.

3. Access the 2018 EAHP Shortage Survey here.

4. Requests for interviews with Aida Batista or Nenad Miljkovic can be made by contacting info[at]eahp[dot]eu | 00 322 669 2513