FREEDOM!
Iâm posting this, but I donât recommend reading itâŚ
For a few weeks now, we have been dealing with a national shortage of amoxicillin. For those unaware, amox is the most prescribed antibiotic in pediatrics, being cheap, effective and good-tasting. Last week, Tamiflu was added to the âwe ainât got noneâ list, which doesnât break my heart, I donât like it much, but it leaves no options for those with flu who actually need treatment. Today I was notified that the manufacturer is out of cefalexin, the back-up drug to amox. This leaves us with higher powered, more expensive, more broad spectrum more dangerous drugs as our only real options. No clue where the bottle neck is, but man, this sucks!!
Jesus, that sucks.
How do we not have a strategic stockpile of necessary medications?
Well, hell, now cefdinir is gone too. We need to figure out what there still is!
Because MBAs convinced everyone* that the Free Market demands JIT supply chains
* for values of âeveryoneâ to equal "everyone who has any power over whether there are strategic stockpiles of anything.
that article doesnât have answers either, but i found this part interesting:
Unfortunately, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacistsâ website, there is neither a stated reason for, nor an anticipated resolution of, the shortages in many of these medications. For example, for oral amoxicillin, three of the five manufacturers âdid not provide a reasonâ for the shortages, and one ârefuses to provide availability information,â the site said. (The US Food and Drug Administration and some manufacturers have pointed to an increased demand for amoxicillin due to the number of respiratory illnesses this season.)
The FDA recognizes the potential impact any drug shortage may have on health care providers and patients,â the FDA told BuzzFeed News in an email. âWhile the agency does not manufacture drugs and cannot require a pharmaceutical company to make a drug, make more of a drug, or change the distribution of a drug, the public should rest assured the FDA works closely with manufacturers to prevent or reduce the impact of shortages
i wonder how this works in other countriesâŚ
Thatâs not at all reassuring. Writing what should be a simple prescription has turned into a scavenger hunt, calling multiple pharmacies to locate supplies. My staff are running on fumes and do not need this as an additional burden. And, of course, to way too many parents this just proves that âyou guys obviously do not care about my childâs suffering.â 
My job has me in pharmacies a couple of times a week. Over the last few days I have seen numerous people turned away, or told to go to store over 20 miles away to get amoxicillin. I have never seen anything like it.
I have been doing this for 30+ years, and this is a first for me. A little scary, to be honest, as the list of âsorry, spin againâ keeps getting longer.
Today, my daughterâs preschool told us that they suspect she has an autism spectrum disorder. At 3 years and 10 months, she is still unable to socialize or interact with other children and just plays by herself.
They are bringing in a specialist from the city to observe her and talk to us on December 13. I do have a family history (on my biological motherâs side) of autism, as does my wife.
I love my daughter no matter what, and Japan provides really comprehensive support for people with developmental disorders, but this is still kind of hard to wrap my head around.
It can be crushing to learn that your child might be different. Nobody can tell you how youâre supposed to react to that news.
Please be aware that there are some here who know what itâs like, and weâre here to listen to you, talk to you, and do what we can to reassure and support you, and your daughter.
Itâs not the end of the world, itâs an open door to a different world.
I really appreciate that. I will post an update here after the meeting on the 13th and, depending on how that goes, I think you might be seeing a lot more of me in that thread.
Sheâs still the same sweet little girl that sheâs always been, and nothing is going to change that.
Thatâs the thing to hold on to. Whatever diagnosis she has, she is the same person before the Dx as afterwards. Whatever you know or suspect or however that changes, she remains always herself.
Being diagnosed so young, and then getting supportive help immediately, is a gift that will make such a positive difference in her development. Definitely, join us over there if you need to.
And remember: Autism Speaks is a problematic organization, so find other resources to learn.
