Accessibility - Google News - Wednesday, September 12, 2018 at 11:07 AM
Preparing for Medication Safety, Accessibility During a Natural Disaster
Hurricanes, flooding, wildfires, tornadoes, blizzards and other natural
disasters can happen at any time. Having an emergency plan helps pharmacists,
pharmacies, and patients protect themselves and their medications, during a
disaster event and in the aftermath.
Pre-planning is especially important for patients on a prescription drug
regimen, as nonadherence may be life-threatening for certain conditions.
According to the FDA, pharmacists play an important role in planning for
emergencies like those that can be created by dangerous storm situations, like
Hurricane Florence could create in the Carolinas this week. Pharmacists must
ensure their patients are informed about how to keep themselves and their
medications safe.1
“An emergency plan is especially important for those with health concerns,
particularly if the power goes out,” said pharmacist Henry Yu, in a Drug Info
Rounds video from the FDA.2 “Taking precautions for storing medications and
supplies is key to being prepared.”
According to the FDA, pharmacists should advise patients to:2
* Keep a current list of medications on hand, including dose and indication.
* Keep a log of how much medication they have.
* Receive early refills in the event of limited pharmacy access.
* Place medication in water-tight containers to prevent exposure to
floodwater.
* Have ice handy for refrigerated medications.
Following a natural disaster, a loss of power or flooding may affect
medications. Prescription drugs can be altered after exposure to extreme
temperatures that can occur with power loss, and prescription drugs may be
contaminated by flood water or broken pipes.3
Pharmacists can assist patients in examining medications for damage and discard
the treatment if necessary. For medications that must be reconstituted,
pharmacists should advise patients to only use bottled water if clean water is
otherwise unavailable. In addition, if the power has been out for an extended
amount of time, refrigerated products should be discarded.3
For patients on life-sustaining drugs, such as insulin, an unrefrigerated drug
be may used until new doses are available. Since temperature-sensitive drugs
may lose potency if unrefrigerated, they should be replaced immediately, FDA
officials recommend.3
In circumstances where the containers of life-saving medications have been
exposed to floodwater and other treatments are not available, pharmacists can
determine if the drug should be used, as long as the contents appear to be
unaffected, according to the FDA. However, the agency has warned that once
replacement drugs are available, potentially contaminated drugs should be
disposed of and patients should begin treatment with non-contaminated drugs.3
________________________________
Click
here<https://www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/news/pharmacists-in-texas-provide-calm-amidst-the-storm-of-hurricane-harvey>
to read how pharmacists in Texas prepared for Hurricane Harvey and assisted
patients.
________________________________
In 2017, a variety of types of natural disasters affected communities across
the United States, including hurricanes in Puerto Rico, Florida, and Texas.
During a presentation at Asembia’s Specialty Pharmacy Summit 2018 in Las Vegas,
Nevada, Gary Rice, RPh, MS, MBA, CSP, executive vice president of operations
for Diplomat Pharmacy Inc, Flint, Michigan, said sustained challenges persisted
in some cases, and ongoing hurricane recovery efforts in Puerto Rico
underscores the importance of long-range and advance planning.4
An effective disaster preparedness plan incorporates 3 elements, said Asembia
presenters: emergency response, disaster recovery, and business continuity. The
highest priority is the lives and safety of patients and employees, followed by
inventory and equipment that can be moved or rescued, and, finally, facilities.4
In addition to threats to their own lives and safety, employees may face other
challenges during or after a disaster.4 A pharmacy should consider whether a
facility will be operating and if employees will be able to work, according to
Rice. Prior to a disaster, he said, companies need to have human resource
policies and procedures in place that address these situations, such as the
amount of time off from work afforded to staff to take care of their homes and
families. Finances might become an issue, as well. “Employees want to know
certain things,” he said, “like ‘Am I going to get paid during a disaster?’”
Local geography should also be considered. Inaccessible roads or flooding can
affect employees’ ability to get to work, as well as whether medications and
supplies can be delivered. “How do we best support our patients? We have to get
the product to them,” Rice said, during the presentation.4 In some cases, such
as for patients living in temporary housing, it may be more efficient to
provide medications through a doctor’s office or by mailing them to a post
office box instead of an uninhabitable residence.
In Houston, Texas, employees of Southside Specialty Pharmacy prepared for
Hurricane Harvey by ensuring patients would have access to medication. When 1
patient in need of miltefosine for treatment of a rare condition could not
obtain the drug locally, Southside staff first attempted to obtain a shipment
for the manufacturer. However, weather made shipment impossible. Instead,
Southside’s director of nursing flew to Florida and back to retrieve the drug,
which made it to the patient within an hour of its arrival in Houston.5
________________________________
The full story of Southside’s efforts during Hurricane Harvey can be found at
SpecialtyPharmacyTimes.com<https://www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/news/hurricane-harvey-shows-why-specialty-pharmacies-matter-during-natural-disasters>.
________________________________
In addition, technology plays an important role during disaster recovery. In
the event of an emergency, pharmacies should be able to access a data center
with patient information, a call center that allows staff to communicate with
patients, and a fulfillment area that can facilitate prescriptions.4
Redundancy is key for pharmacies during long-term recovery efforts, Rice said.
Backup licensed facilities and pharmacists, systems, and data access can help
maintain service during an emergency and aftermath. Experts recommend running
through disaster scenarios with staff members, who should be prepared and able
to identify areas that need improvement.4
“This is all about being prepared. It’s not just the planning but [also] doing
those desktop scenarios and challenging your team so that they really
understand some of those weather conditions,” Rice said.
According to Asembia presenters, Diplomat has learned from its own experiences
with natural disasters, including a weather event in Florida. As a hurricane
approached, the company prepared by sending some inventory from Florida to
Michigan, Rice said, but faced an unforeseen issue returning the inventory when
the delivery route became inaccessible.
Through such experiences, Diplomat recognized that its process was effective in
the short term but needed to expand capabilities for longer-term recoveries. In
response, the company created a new fulfillment and distribution center that
provides data redundancy capabilities for servicing operations across the
country. 4
References
1. Toich L. How Pharmacists Can Help Patients Plan for Natural Disasters.
Specialty Pharmacy Times.
https://www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/news/how-pharmacists-can-help-patients-plan-for-natural-disasters.
Published September 8, 2017. Accessed September 12, 2018.
2. Transcript: Emergency Preparedness – Keeping Medications Safe (Feb 2016).
FDA website.
https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/HealthProfessionals/ucm486323.htm. ;
Updated February 18, 2016. Accessed September 12, 2018.
3. Toich L. Pharmacists Play Critical Role After Natural Disasters.
Specialty Pharmacy Times.
www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/news/pharmacists-play-critical-role-after-natural-disasters<http://www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/news/pharmacists-play-critical-role-after-natural-disasters>.
Published September 11, 2017. Accessed September 12, 2018.
4. Crossley K. How Specialty Pharmacies Can Be Prepared When Disaster
Strikes. Specialty Pharmacy Times.
www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/publications/specialty-pharmacy-times/2018/2018-asembia-recap/how-specialty-pharmacies-can-be-prepared-when-disaster-strikes<http://www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/publications/specialty-pharmacy-times/2018/2018-asembia-recap/how-specialty-pharmacies-can-be-prepared-when-disaster-strikes>.
Published June 25, 2018. Accessed September 12, 2018.
5. Toich L. Hurricane Harvey Shows Why Specialty Pharmacies Matter During
Natural Disasters. Specialty Pharmacy Times.
www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/news/hurricane-harvey-shows-why-specialty-pharmacies-matter-during-natural-disasters<http://www.specialtypharmacytimes.com/news/hurricane-harvey-shows-why-specialty-pharmacies-matter-during-natural-disasters>.
Published September 1, 2017. Accessed September 12, 2018.
https://www.pharmacytimes.com/news/preparing-for-medication-safety-accessibility-during-a-natural-disaster
David Goldfield
Assistive Technology Specialist
Feel free to visit my Web site
WWW.DavidGoldfield.info<http://WWW.DavidGoldfield.info>
