Shortage

The government announced on Thursday afternoon it had issued Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) across the UK for three penicillin medicines due to high demand.

SSPs are a standard procedure, used frequently to manage temporary and potential medicine supply issues. Most people who come into contact with Strep A bacteria remain well and symptom-free. If the medicine isn’t available, the patient must be sent back to the prescriber to get a new prescription for an alternative. Minister of state for health Will Quince said: “The increased demand for the antibiotics prescribed to treat Strep A has meant some pharmacists have been unable to supply the medicine shown on the prescription. [antibiotics](/topic/antibiotics) amid a rise in [Strep A](/topic/strep-a) cases across the [UK](/topic/uk) has lead to an emergency rule change to allow [pharmacists](/topic/pharmacists) to supply alternative [penicillin](/topic/penicillin) to treat Strep A. The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) hopes the SSPs will help mitigate local supply issues of oral penicillin and allow pharmacists to supply alternative forms of the medicine if they don’t have the specific formulation stated on the prescription.

London: The UK government on Thursday admitted there were serious shortages of antibiotics to treat bacterial infections in children, despite more tha...

"There are no current shortages of drugs available to treat this and there are well-established procedures in place to ensure that that remains the case," he told parliament on December 7. Quince said the situation was "temporary" and "localised" because of the high numbers of Strep A and Scarlet Fever cases. It comes after at least 19 children died in the United Kingdom from severe cases of Group A Streptococcus (Strep A) infection, and shortages of other types of antibiotics in Europe and North America.

On Saturday, my two-year-old daughter developed scarlet fever. This is a fairly common childhood infection, treatable with antibiotics.

[shortage of amoxicillin](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-11-02/amoxicillin-shortage-reveals-fragility-of-antibiotic-supply), another common antibiotic used to treat children and adults. The BMJ paper lays out a raft of interconnected measures. But the aggravation and fear are far from the only problem. [33% off](https://howl.me/ciHr3Enl66G) The war and its effect on energy prices also added costs to the production of everything, drugs included. Complications from a progression of the same infection, caused by the Group A streptococcus bacterium, have been responsible for [15 deaths of children](https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/dec/08/strep-a-child-death-toll-in-uk-rises-to-15) this year. The inability to get supplies of lifesaving drugs, quickly and in large supply, has long been a problem in poor countries. This involved phoning and queuing at pharmacies, and tramping through the snow to the doctor three times for prescriptions updated in line with what was available. But the last three years have seen existing supply chain problems proliferate and deepen, while new ones have sprung up, sparked by the global pandemic and, more recently, the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But supplies of these drugs—so common we might risk forgetting that they’re lifesaving— [are running low](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-63970339). In November, the US Food and Drug Administration announced a But low supplies of antibiotics isn’t just a UK problem.

A total of 16 children have died from invasive Group A streptococcal infection (iGAS) in recent weeks, prompting health officials to lower the prescription ...

[Many pharmacists have also complained of a lack of stock. They are making thousands of pounds of losses. Several parents with children suffering from Strep A have described the process of sourcing antibiotics from pharmacies as a “nightmare”](https://www.standard.co.uk/news/health/strep-a-london-penicillin-amoxicillin-pharmacists-shortages-b1046781.html). “All pharmacists are in dismay as to what is unfolding in front of our eyes. Minister of State for Health Will Quince said: “The increased demand for the antibiotics prescribed to treat Strep A has meant some pharmacists have been unable to supply the medicine shown on the prescription. [pharmacists](/topic/pharmacists) will be allowed supply a “specified alternative medicine”, removing the need for the patient to return to the prescriber.

The early learning staff shortage felt in Dayton and across the nation is arguably one of the industry's most important struggles as this is amongst the ...

“Every childcare teacher who educates a classroom of children is not only working with children in the most important time of brain development but is also allowing parents to confidently go to work each day." There are nearly 2,000 children on preschool waitlists across Montgomery County as of September due to the 300 vacant childcare staff positions, according to a September Preschool Promise survey. In the last year and a half, Lightcap’s team has helped 36 teachers complete their education programs. In large part due to compensation, Preschool Promise sites lost three times the number of teachers in early childhood classrooms than pre-pandemic levels. “Sadly, our country has not invested adequately in the early childhood education system, and we pay terribly low wages to childcare staff and teachers.” It's also provided a support dog to help with early students' social-emotional learning.

The UK government on Thursday admitted there were serious shortages of antibiotics to treat bacterial infections in children, despite more than a week of ...

"There are no current shortages of drugs available to treat this and there are well-established procedures in place to ensure that that remains the case," he told parliament on December 7. Quince said the situation was "temporary" and "localized" because of the high numbers of Strep A and Scarlet Fever cases. It comes after at least 19 children died in the United Kingdom from severe cases of Group A Streptococcus (Strep A) infection, and shortages of other types of antibiotics in Europe and North America.

A phone app is gaining momentum with the goal of ending the nursing shortage across Tampa Bay. The pioneered technology is being dubbed the "uber of ...

The pioneered technology is being dubbed the "uber of nursing" giving healthcare workers more options to fill the gaps. I don't have to do Monday through Friday Monday through Sunday and have to come up with daycare or anything." (Tampa Bay Now News) - A phone app is gaining momentum with the goal of ending the nursing shortage across Tampa Bay.

Australians looking forward to demolishing a serving (or three) of fries at home this summer may be forced to curb their appetite after a top grocer ...

Coles Group Ltd., Australia’s second-largest supermarket chain, imposed a temporary purchase limit of two lots of frozen fries per transaction, citing supply issues, according to a [statement](https://www.coles.com.au/help/product-limits) posted on its website Thursday.

Australian farmers blame a cold and wet winter for shortfall in potatoes, with shortages likely to persist until January.

“The crops are down and we’re back to about half of the usual tonnage.” “It’s been an extremely hard year, the tonnages were down and it’s been a cold and wet winter too, which doesn’t help.” “It all started back in January when we got the floods, it wiped a lot of potato crops out and the tonnage was heavily down for this year,” he told 3AW radio.

Shortage warnings have been issued by the government for three types of penicillin medicines - after 19 children were now confirmed to have died in the UK ...

Minister of State for Health Will Quince said: “The increased demand for the antibiotics prescribed to treat Strep A has meant some pharmacists have been unable to supply the medicine shown on the prescription. The UK Health Security Agency has been urging GPs to prescribe antibiotics if there is a slight chance children may have the Strep A infection. Demand for penicillin has risen recently as it is used to treat Strep A and SSPs are a standard procedure and are used frequently to manage temporary and potential medicine supply issues. Pharmacists will instead have the flexibility to supply an alternative form if they don’t have the exact one in stock. The alarm has been raised by ministers over a shortage of penicillin to treat Strep A as cases surge among young children.

Impacted potato crops have lead to a national shortage of the summer staple.

Myers said at the time that “the shortage could be coming at any time” given that “serious conditions” have affected growers in South Australia, Victoria, the Murray region, and Queensland. “Other regions around Australia are close to their harvest times, and they’re going to be having difficulties getting them out of the ground.” “We thank customers for their patience while we work hard with suppliers to minimise disruption and return stock to normal levels in the coming months,” the spokesperson said. “It’s been an incredibly long and wet winter, we just haven’t had any long periods of drying that we would normally expect at this time of year,” she told 7NEWS in November. “Poor weather in the eastern states has affected supply of some frozen potato products across the industry,” a Coles spokesperson said. [Hot chips will be temporarily rationed](https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/food) between spud-lovers as [Coles](https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/coles) introduces [purchase limits.](https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/shopping) [Weather-affected potato crops](https://7news.com.au/business/agriculture) have led to a nationwide shortage of the Australian summer favourite.

OLAMIDE FAMUWAGUN writes on how residents of the Ogun Waterside Local Government Area suffer the loss of loved ones due to the lack of manpower in Ibiade ...

He said, “What it takes to run a hospital has to be well specified and thorough because a hospital takes care of the lives of people. We are trying to provide health services to our people in all our health facilities around the state. Normally when a patient is taken to the hospital, regardless of the hour, there is supposed to be a doctor on the ground but this is not so here. He said, “Hands are on deck to find those supposed to be on duty to carry out the necessary sanctions. Adekunle Mudashiru, when contacted by our correspondent said he was not aware of the deaths that had occurred due to the hospital’s lack of manpower but the state government had done its best to renovate the hospital. In addition, patients visiting the hospital on delay in accessing services have made several complaints, as they have to wait for long hours, cope with the attitude of overstretched healthcare professionals, lack of doctors on site, and many more, which could be attributed to acute shortage of human resources.” We need a doctor to live here so that the response time is faster and more effective. Tayo had to be rushed to the Ibiade General hospital, which was a three-hour journey from Ode-Omi, where she resided and unfortunately, Tayo died on the way. “We plead with the government to please give us enough doctors and nurses. That day, we suddenly had to rush him to the hospital because he was suddenly unresponsive. The truth is that we need more doctors to prevent things like this.” He said, “I urge the government to please provide qualified doctors that can be at Waterside permanently and not one who is part-time.

Under the protocols, pharmacists are able to supply alternative strengths or tablets with immediate effect. Infectious diseases. 15 December 2022.

Health minister Will Quince said: “The increased demand for the antibiotics prescribed to treat Strep A has meant some pharmacists have been unable to supply the medicine shown on the prescription. [Department of Health and Social Care said on 7 December 2022](/article/news/children-can-be-given-oral-solid-dose-antibiotics-amid-supply-problems-nhs-guidance-says) that there is “no supplier shortage” of antibiotics available to treat Strep A. [pharmacists have reported shortages](/article/news/children-can-be-given-oral-solid-dose-antibiotics-amid-supply-problems-nhs-guidance-says) of antibiotics and increased prices, with some saying that they have been forced to dispense prescriptions at a financial loss.

This summer, Australians might have to control their cravings for fries. A prominent grocer in Australia recently restricted the purchase of potatoes due to ...

He added that the effects on processed potato products will roughly last till 2023. This adds to already existing pressure on Australia which is exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Australia's second-largest grocer, Coles Group Ltd on Thursday issued a statement on its website that said that it has temporarily imposed a purchase limit of two packets of frozen fries per transaction for supply concerns

These shortages are a result of rising demand and supply chain bottlenecks. But there are things that can be done to reduce harms to public health.

[antibiotics price increases](https://amp-theguardian-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/amp.theguardian.com/society/2022/dec/13/uk-pharmacists-report-sharp-rise-in-prices-for-strep-a-antibiotics?utm_source=upday&utm_medium=referral), to ensure they maintain a healthy profit margin, can contribute to supply continuity. The majority of amoxicillin- and penicillin-based products are “narrow-spectrum” antibiotics, meaning that they target a specific set of infections. In [the UK](https://www.ft.com/content/10688692-57c5-4c84-a333-789df699be6e), for example, the availability of amoxicillin and penicillin, which are used to treat infections such as strep A, is low. Governments also need to work with manufacturers and wholesalers to review their stockpiling policies. This level of supply market concentration can lead to severe availability issues when medicine supply chains are disrupted. They are the result of well-known demand and supply issues. But altered immunity levels in the population related to the COVID pandemic seem to have influenced infection cycles. The current shortage of antibiotics could have negative effects on patients and raises public health concerns. A specific challenge has been [broad-spectrum antibiotics](https://www.reactgroup.org/toolbox/understand/antibiotics/how-do-antibiotics-work/) elevate the risk of antimicrobial resistance, making it more challenging to treat infections in the long run. [securing supplies](https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/dec/09/parents-report-struggle-to-find-antibiotics-uk-strep-a-cases-rise) of key antibiotics to meet the spike in demand. [more than 60%](https://asia.nikkei.com/static/vdata/infographics/chinavaccine-3/) of the supply of active pharmaceutical ingredients globally in 2020.

Experts say that IT leaders can find success by investing in female staff and growing diverse teams.

[relationship equity](https://www.inc.com/adam-fridman/three-reasons-relationship-equity-is-the-new-lead.html),” which is important for business leaders to keep in mind. [rethink cyber architecture from the ground up](https://biztechmagazine.com/article/2022/12/palo-alto-networks-ignite-22-ai-powered-secops-future-cybersecurity),” said Preucil. Whitmore spoke at [Palo Alto Ignite ’22](https://biztechmagazine.com/events/palo-alto-ignite), hosted by [Palo Alto Networks](https://www.cdw.com/content/cdw/en/brand/paloalto.html) on Dec. [according to a 2022 study](https://cybersecurityventures.com/women-in-cybersecurity-report-2022/). “Every day, IT leaders are investing in stronger security, but we also need to invest in our people,” Whitmore said. This number has more than doubled since 2013 and is [expected to reach 30 percent by 2025 and 35 percent by 2031](https://cybersecurityventures.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Women-In-Cybersecurity-2022-Report-Final.pdf). Whitmore got more personal: “If you are a woman in this space, you have the chance to speak up and own your power,” she said. And [actively hiring](https://biztechmagazine.com/article/2022/07/why-businesses-must-overcome-ai-bias-hiring-and-how-they-can-do-it) is the only way to address the more than 3.5 million cybersecurity roles that could remain unfilled between now and 2025, according to Cybersecurity Ventures. [Palo Alto’s Unit 42](https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/unit42/respond/incident-response), and Lindsay Preucil, assistant vice president of cyber at [AT&T](https://www.cdw.com/search/?key=AT%20T), a large talent pool is being overlooked. Whitmore mentioned that the pandemic made flexible work schedules acceptable, making it easier for working women to stay in the field. Photo courtesy of Palo Alto Networks. [Click the banner below to receive exclusive data analytics content when you register as an Insider](https://biztechmagazine.com/about-insider).

The Marquette Alger Regional Educational Services Agency (MARESA) tracks data on teachers and students in Upper Michigan. It says since 2008 there's been a 12% ...

“Now there’s a fair amount of innovation with those new resources infused into the state and we’re trying to get a resurgence of educators into our systems,” Nyen said. “The funding for our profession has finally made a positive turn I will say, to look at it optimistically,” said Sedgwick. (WLUC) - State legislators have set up hundreds of millions of dollars in funding and new programs aimed at tackling the teacher shortage in Michigan.

The price of hot chips could rise this festive season due to a looming shortage of fresh potatoes due to recent wet weather on Australia's east coast.

"We thank customers for their patience while we work hard with suppliers to minimise disruption and return stock to normal levels in the coming months." - Pubs and takeaway shops might need to offer alternatives or raise the price of hot chips The price of hot chips could rise this festive season due to a looming shortage of fresh potatoes due to recent wet weather on Australia's east coast.

Aussie pub-goers could be hit by sharp increases in prices to their favourite meals over the Christmas per...

"At the moment we're hoping it will be a three-to-six-month shortage and during that time we'll absorb the cost so it doesn't impact patrons - after that, we may have to consider raising our prices," head of Lewis Leisure, which has hotels in Queensland and NSW, Brad Jenkins said. One hotel operator said pubgoers may actually be spared the pain of more expensive meals in the short term, but if the shortage goes on too long, venues will have no choice but to pass on the increases. "International supply has also been impacted by drought - the other problem here in Australia is a delay in planting also caused by bad weather in Victoria," Red Funnel Food Service Distributors director George Sofianos said.