Drug shortage department is a team of freshly graduated pharmacists, yet highly esteemed, creative, reliable and highly enthusiastic. They take upon their shoulders a challenging mission which is indeed complicated, yet empowers them to more thinking and more achievements. The following are the tasks done by the team:
1- Community pharmacies (Local Market) follow up:
Periodical drug shortages lists being reported to us via inspector pharmacists all over governorates.
2- Governmentally supplied drugs (MOH Tender) follow up:
Tender drugs suffering a supply shortage are being reported to us via drug supply specialist pharmacists all over health affairs directorates using the recently published web application that reports and alerts for tender shortages, so we can rapidly resolve them by cooperating with manufacturers to resupply them with the short drugs or their available similar ones.
3- Factories follow up:
Periodical visits to drug factories to follow up production, stock and problems they are suffering with their essential drug products.
4- Life-saving drugs follow up:
Daily monitoring for life-saving drugs, preventing any shortage could take place, taking very strict and immediate actions in case of sudden shortage.
5- Drug shortage committee:
A weekly session is held where different drug shortages related topics and issues are being discussed with the committee members to take exceptional decisions and recommendations and to set regulations for further dealing with such cases.
6- Hot line complaints:
Receiving citizens' complaints about drug shortages via our HOT LINE and work on solving their complaints by directing them to the place where they can find the drug or recommending them the available similar or alternative product.
7- General complaints:
Receiving officially written complaints from citizens, governmental organizations or private organizations about drug shortages and work on solving these complaints.
8- Manufacturers and Importers support:
Giving our support to drug manufacturers and importers to solve their CAPA related problems that lead to drug shortages.
9- Periodical drug shortages bulletin:
Preparing and publishing a periodical bulletin of drugs in short and their similar or alternative products if available.
10- Drug shortages reports:
Preparing drug shortages reports where we analyze reasons and recommend solutions to be submitted to decision makers.
11- Consultant (Market meter):
For CAPA directorates to assist them taking the right decisions concerning drugs.
12- Cooperating with Export directorate: In applying the minister decree that stated banning exportation of drugs suffering shortage. We are pleased to receive your feedback (which we really need) about any ideas that could improve these tasks or even add more tasks to strictly control drug market drug shortages. N.B.:
The majority of drug shortage information is provided to DSD by manufacturers and distributors. Communication between DSD and the public is an essential component of preventing and mitigating drug shortages. To ensure information is current, DSD appreciates shortage notifications to be reported via this page or email.
