Cairns pharmacy solves antibiotic shortage

A CAIRNS pharmacy is helping to ensure children receive the best possible medication, as pharmacies around the country struggle to get stock of antibiotics.

Global supply chain issues have resulted in serious stock shortages for common antibiotic treatments, including amoxicillin, which is commonly used to treat bacterial infections like bronchitis, sinusitis and pneumonia.

Marlin Coast Amcal Pharmacist Phil Anderson said this issue has been ongoing for months, and suppliers simply cannot make enough medication to meet the demand worldwide.

“We’ve got antibiotic shortages of lots of different molecules at the moment, and particularly antibiotic syrups,” Mr Anderson said.

“That means GPs are writing out scripts and we’re having to go back and say, we don’t have these in stock, but we can possibly compound a solution.”

While antibiotic tablets or capsules are more likely to be in stock, the liquid suspension for children is very hard to get hold of.

Marlin Coast Amcal Pharmacy has a specialised compounding lab which allows the pharmacist to create medication from scratch using the raw ingredients.

It is one of the few pharmacies in Far North Queensland that offer this service, and it’s making a huge difference for sick kids.

In most cases the pharmacist will try and work with the doctor to find an alternative antibiotic, but sometimes there is no other option.

“As a parent you want to make sure your child is getting the right antibiotic for the right bug,” Mr Anderson said.

“It’s great that we can offer this service to make sure the child is getting the best possible treatment for their infection.”