‘There are still 5 to 600 medicines missing’

One of the core tasks of pharmacists is the seamless delivery of medicines to people. How can pharmacies guarantee this nationwide supply at all? Dr Kobinger speaks here of a system that stands on two legs: “Spatial availability on the one hand and temporal availability on the other. We have a very sophisticated distribution system. The pharmacies are where the people are, and they are also located where the population is growing and there is a need is up to pharmacies, and this spatial distribution ensures, for example, that 95% of people can reach a pharmacy within ten minutes,” says the vice president of the Austrian Chamber of Pharmacists.

Pharmacies available more than 50 hours a week
In terms of opening hours, the country’s pharmacies are generally available more than 50 hours a week. “That is the second pillar, time availability. And outside these 50 hours we also offer on-call services. Whether at night, on weekends or on public holidays,” emphasizes Dr. Kolbinger in conversation with Raphaela Scharf. The expert calculates that there are on-call services that you finance yourself and that cost around 30 million euros annually in Austria “So they are not paid by the government, but the pharmacy has to generate them itself. But this ensures that every Austrian can get medicines and the necessary advice 24 hours a day and in a well-distributed area close to his place of residence”.

The pharmacy as a modern healthcare provider
This cover applies to both rural and urban areas. There would be “absolutely no” differences here, as Dr. emphasizes Kolbinger. “Half of all pharmacies in Austria are located in rural areas, small towns and rural areas. And that’s how we achieve this area coverage. And the pharmacies see themselves as modern local healthcare providers and we also radiate that in the small communities.” The healthcare provided is, in his words, “an asset to any community if a pharmacy is present.” Additional services are also provided there, adds Dr. Kolbinger in conversation with Raphaela Scharf. “One specializes in orthopaedics, the other focuses on midwives, depending on what is needed in the area, up to and including postal partners. In other words, services that go beyond mere medicine and advice.”

What about other services in smaller towns, for example the provision of health screenings? This has been an issue since the corona pandemic, “where we performed the corona tests very quickly, very easily and scalable depending on the need. People were really happy and happy and grateful that we did it,” recalls Dr. Kolbinger of the challenges of the past few years. Overall, this is an industry that is gaining importance. “There are also other screenings and health checks that are happening here in the pharmacies are offered and which the population is very happy to accept, and which also make sense in terms of health policy”.

Vaccinations as another important pharmacy service
Another service that pharmacists have wanted to offer for a long time is vaccinations in pharmacies. When asked what the status quo is here, the vice president of the Austrian Chamber of Pharmacists explains that some 2,000 pharmacists have already been trained in vaccination. “International examples show that this is also highly appreciated by the population and that vaccination coverage is significantly increased,” adds Dr. Kolbinger. Pharmacists are allowed to vaccinate in about 14 countries in the EU plus the US, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. “And there you see that the vaccination rate is rising sharply and nothing is being taken away from the doctors. You help them because the whole vaccination process is getting a kick, as it were, and the vaccination rate is going up and the doctors are also vaccinating more than before”.

The subject of drug distribution is also a very explosive topic at the moment, which is also very often discussed in the media. What about delivery bottlenecks? With the drugs? Is relaxation in sight here? The Vice President of the Austrian Chamber of Pharmacists cannot give an all-clear here. As a result, 5 to 600 medicines are still missing. This is currently particularly painful with antibiotic juices for children. Although the supply situation for fever-reducing and pain-relieving medicines, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, has eased somewhat, “we still see a shortage of antibiotic juices for children and as pharmacists we have taken the initiative.”

The supply of medicines must be secured in the long term
Together with the Association for Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, the Austrian Chamber of Pharmacists has “developed recipes” in which the pharmacists themselves process the raw material into an antibiotic juice for children. “It kind of relaxes you, soothes the worst of the deficit,” says Dr. Kolbinger. To guarantee this in the long term, the pharmacies still need two things: on the one hand, a purchase guarantee from the ministry or storage of raw materials, active substances and excipients; and on the other hand, a compensation from the umbrella organization that fits the effort made. “But we are convinced that we will find solutions for the second, and probably very soon for the first point and that we can also take good care of our smallest patients,” concludes the Vice President of the Austrian Chamber of Pharmacists with confidence.