A global medicine shortage is forcing thousands of New Zealanders to switch their medication, with some experts warning the scarcity of some drugs is putting lives at risk.
New Zealand has faced ongoing supply issues since COVID-19 and the problem has been getting worse.
Pharmacist Caitlin Jorgensen said the Wellington store where she works has had quite a few things go out of stock recently.
"Common medications like escitalopram is out of stock, Flixonaserecently got stuck in the Red Sea so that was a major supply issue for our patients," she said.
Escitalopram is an anti-depressant and Flixonase is a nasal spray for hay fever and allergies.
Jorgensen said patients were having to visit pharmacies more frequently and alter their dosage to get them through.
Also affected by the supply shortage are thousands of people with type 2 diabetes.
The chair of General Practice New Zealand, Dr Bryan Betty, said a diabetes drug called trulicity is in very low supply and can't be prescribed to new patients.
He said he often received panicked calls from patients who can't get their medication order filled at the pharmacy.
"It leads to heightened anxiety for the patient, sometimes it leads to sub-optimal diabetes control obviously and that is very difficult for the patient and the doctor or the nurse to deal with," Dr Betty said.
He said it chewed up clinical time dealing with these issues.
There was no indication when the shortages would end.
Pharmac acknowledged that supply issues could be frustrating and worrying for people who needed their medicines.
Pharmac's pharmaceutical director, Geraldine MacGibbon, said medicine supply issues were not isolated to New Zealand and were often the result of a vulnerability in global supply chains and factors outside of their control.
"The last two years have stress-tested New Zealand's supply chain with events like the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, Red Sea conflict, shipping delays, and product discontinuations," she said.
One drug Pharmac was scrambling to secure was the anti-psychotic medication olanzapine. The long-acting injection was prescribed to people with severe mental illness and used to manage symptoms of schizophrenia.
The chair of the New Zealand College of Psychiatrists, Dr Hiran Thabrew, said for those who might have started the medication recently or have experienced significant stresses, then changes in this medication might be enough to provide a setback or mean that they could end up in crisis again or need hospital-level care.
"We certainly know that the mental health system is already facing quite a lot of pressure with workforce shortages, and also shortages of beds," Dr Thabrew said.
MacGibbon said Pharmac was committed to supporting the best possible health outcomes for New Zealanders, by doing its best to get New Zealanders access to the medicines they need.
