To ask why pharmacies are out of stock of almost everything?

[chefontheshelf]

It's no secret the NHS is in shambles, but can anyone tell me why all of my local pharmacies seem to be in shambles as well? They never seem to have any stock. I feel like I'm living in some kind of war torn country that's unable to bring in aid to its citizens. What is going on? These photos were taken a week apart and in 2 different pharmacies, so plenty of time to have got stock in. They're still like this as of yesterday.

Is it like this nation wide? What's going on?

Lorry driver strikes, covid, winter flu, petrol shortages, brexit, the rain, the snow, the starling murmurations. Whatever reason suits your agenda, argument, and political view.

As a few pps have said, the pharmacies in my town (4 of them,) are always fully stocked. So maybe the person who orders the stock is just shit at their job.

I'm posting meds out to Canada as they are having worse shortages than us. So no not brexit

2 weeks ago my brother couldn't get me cold and flu stuff in local pharmacy nor in nearest city when I had Covid. I went to local shop today and NO cold and flu preparations on the shelves. Barely any paracetamol.

Aren't those shelves are supermarket shelves and not a chemist ?

I always stock up when in turkey or spain, its all a lot cheaper and more effective than stuff you can buy here....we also have antibiotics so if the doctor is going to prescibe them, we dont take the prescription and pay the £9 etc...just use our own ones....Frenadol from spain is good for colds and flu.

Brexit. Loads of meds used in the UK come either from Germany or Ireland.

Our pharmacy also told us that the making up of prescriptions has now been centralised, they're not supposed to make them up in branch any morre even if they have the stock.

I'm just glad I've read and watched a tonne of dystopian science fiction otherwise this would all have come as a very nasty shock....

Shelves are also like that in Ireland. V little in the way of steroids and children's augmentin before Christmas, talks about there being a shortage of calpol and broncho stop at the moment.

I live in forrin (mainland europe) and ibuprofen/paracetamol containing medicines and sntibiotics, especially child suitable formulations are not easily available atm.

it's the covid pandemic + flu + strep a + general cold.

plus globalisation - most medications and active ingredients are made in india and china which are short staffed due to the wave of illnesses as well.

for uk, brexit is 'just' one additional factor.

Staff shortages, particularly in warehouses and transportation affecting the flow rate into the country, so, Government policy including on wages and Brexit)

Most of our drugs being imported.

Inflation being particularly bad in the U.K. compared to other markets so everything costs more to transport here but drug companies aren't allowed to keep putting the prices up. (Government economic policy and Brexit)

The UK being generally unattractive to do business in these days. (Government policy including Brexit)

Lack of investment and planning and civil servants to work on this problem. Just as there are delays getting a passport etc there are also delays approving medicines or working on supply chain issues. (Government policy degrading public services and Brexit)

Not just UK, there's been a shortage of paracetamol amongst other things in France.

Are you supposed to post drugs overseas?

Anyway, that aside, I agree. I know people in New Zealand, and Canada, and America, and Ireland, who are having issues with meds too, (and a poster has just said France have issues.)

It is not 'Brexit' causing it. The Brexit naysayers don't want to hear this though. Doesn't suit their agenda. When things go wrong or don't go as they want in this country, these people always blame BREXIT. YAWWWN. Change the record why dontcha??? 😩

Thanks for more than just the usual response

Did I say it was all ‘paracetamol etc’ ?

@KangarooKenny hence why I said etc..

Nope
I go to Savers in two different places and they are always well stocked to be Honest

I’m a pharmacist who goes round to different pharmacies. I believe those are Morrison’s supermarket shelves, not an actual pharmacy? There is a problem with cold and flu products at the moment but the main problem I’ve seen is staffing issues. As soon as they’re put on the shelves, they’re bought and most pharmacies I go to barely have sufficient staff to dispense medication.

Empty shelves around here and sometimes there is no paracetamol or ibuprofen in Tesco.

Boots didn’t have my prescription last week and said they didn’t know when they would get any stock, possibly never. Tesco did have it. The man in the queue next to me said he had been to four pharmacies to try to get a prescription for his elderly mother.

Interesting article, enjoyed reading that.

Price controls, labour shortages and EU sunset clauses expiring after Brexit, supply issues from abroad - seem to be the main causes, winter pressures are always there.

So no Brexit isn't the main cause, rarely is but it seems to be an additional factor other countries don't have, even if its just 20%, its 20% we put on ourselves.

But what i really want to know is since brexit, i find it harder and harder to get low salt/low sugar alternatives in food stuffs.

Difficult to get Antibiotics in France and it has been for a couple of months.

Getting prescription medicines is becoming very difficult. Recently, I took a prescription into Boots but had to delay the treatment for the nine days it took to source the antibiotics: nothing fancy, just amoxicillin.

I've finally been prescribed HRT after mithering about it for years. Guess what. Out of stock. Great.

Brexit.its what the people wanted.its a nightmare for pharmacists.

Most of it IS linked to Brexit.

The supply chain issues, the economic issues that mean pharmacists don't hold a lot of stock, the warehouse and transport staff shortage issues and the approving new medicine issues particularly.

I take HRT and there is a “manufacturer shortage” of the progesterone so I currently have to take medroprogesterone acetate instead. No idea what the difference is.

Whenever I go to the pharmacy they frequently have to order what I’ve had prescribed. Never used to be like that. Sometimes I’ve had to wait several weeks which is pretty pointless.

It isn’t just medicines though. Over the past couple of years shelves in Boots have frequently been empty. Most frequently it’s make up. Many cheaper favourite microdermabrasion scrubs have stopped being produced.

Not to mention the supermarkets. We’re now paying for onions per item instead of by weight. There have been no peppers in Tesco for the past 2 weeks. No bottlex water or cheap toilet roll.

Is it a production issue?
Is it due to delivery problems?
Is it due to people overbuying?
Why have certain things stopped being made completely?

Are you a doctor to know which type of antibiotic you need??? You know a cold and flu are both viruses and thus antibiotics won't make a difference.

What you are doing is adding to a major major problem of antibiotic resistant bugs. Please do not take random antibiotics.