Drugs shortage at Faro hospital

The hospital in Faro is rationing the amount of the drug typhidera it distributes to patients.

Earlier this week for a patient with multiple sclerosis only one dose was made available for five days in the afternoon after they had been denied the medicine to fight the disease in the morning.

"On Tuesday, they said that there was not, Friday in the morning, they said the same thing again, and in the afternoon, they reported that there was tecfidera available, but they were only going to supply enough for five days," her husband of the patient told Correo da Manha. He added that the hospital had only delivered enough tablets for a week.

The CM reported further that another patient with multiple sclerosis had been denied tecfidera at the hospital on Wednesday morning. The medicine was finally made available to the patient that afternoon, after the CM contacted the Algarve Hospital Center (CHA), which manages the hospitals in Faro, Portimão and Lagos. At the time, the CHA ensured that the reinforcement of the stock would be completed on Thursday and denied any wrongdoing.

Friday though once again they were questioned about the lack of medication and the refusal to surrender to one more patient, the Algarve Hospital Center explained that the stock replenishment was "only completed in the early afternoon of Friday, with the delivery of more units to be dispensed at a time agreed with patients directly. "