Medicines shortages

Chemotherapy for 13,000 patients at risk owing to ‘significant’ aseptic capacity issue, warns ex-NHS England lead

The House of Lords Public Services Committee heard that capacity within aseptic teams is a "significant issue” across England.…

Government secures additional PERT supply until the end of 2025 

In response to a written question to the Department of Health and Social Care, Zubir Ahmed, parliamentary under-secretary of state, said that the department has been in contact with specialist importers of unlicensed pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy stock to cover “the remaining gap in the ma…

Health news round-up: rising flu cases, cheap cancer drugs and some good news for pharmacists

Senior clinical reporter Joanna Robertson summarises some important developments in health news you may have missed.…

Focus on early stages of supply chain to address medicines shortages, study finds

Researchers said that other contributing factors to global supply issues were poor forecasting based on “outdated” prescription data and procurement policies.…

What would you like to know about menopause and HRT?

Help us develop new learning resources on menopause and HRT by sharing your questions and suggestions.…

Former chief pharmaceutical officer concerned about lack of government policy on critical medicines stockpiling

Keith Ridge, now a non-executive director at the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, said that Cabinet Office documents “do not specify that the medicines supply chain has a risk”.…

Are staff shortages compromising safe pharmacy care?

Chronic staffing gaps across community, hospital and primary care settings are stretching pharmacists to the breaking point and putting patient safety on the line, according to The Pharmaceutical Journal’s 2025 salary and job satisfaction survey.…

Government received reports of 28 supply issues per week over past five years

The National Pharmacy Association's data analysis also revealed a 53% increase in the use of medicine supply notifications, from 85 in 2021 to 130 in 2024.…

Health news round-up: Huntington’s disease breakthrough and how to tackle medicines misinformation

Senior clinical reporter Joanna Robertson summarises some important developments in health news.…

Will UK government proposals address the problem of medicines shortages?

Reports of medicines shortages have increased across the UK in recent years, with several factors causing disruption to the supply chain, but do the government’s latest proposals go far enough to tackle the problem?…