There has been extensive national media coverage today (August 11) on how medicine shortages have forced patients to visit multiple pharmacies to get their
prescriptions filled or return to their GP to be prescribed alternative drugs.
These media reports have been based on a survey involving more than 1,500 pharmacists in the UK, in which over a half of those polled said that their patients'
health had been put at risk in the last six months.
In response to a query from Pharmacy Business, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said it monitors the medicines supply chain closely to prevent any
shortages and acts swiftly when any issue arises.
A DHSC spokesperson told Pharmacy Business: "We take patient safety extremely seriously and we routinely share information about medicine supply issues directly
with the NHS so they can put plans in place to reduce the risk of any shortage impacting patients, including offering alternative medication.