HPS Pharmacies wish to advise that Accord Healthcare is experiencing a supply interruption for epirubicin as follows:
Epirubicin Accord
Epirubicin hydrochloride 200mg/100mL
ARTG 227997
Normal supplies of Epirubicin Accord are expected to return by early September 2024. HPS Pharmacies also sources compounded epirubicin products from Baxter Healthcare. These products have been subject to a reduced shelf-life due to a supply shortage from their supplier. These compounded epirubicin products are due to expire on 31 May 2024.
Baxter Healthcare anticipates approval to supply an internationally registered epirubicin product shortly via Section 19A of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989. The timing of this approval from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) may affect the availability of epirubicin doses due between 31 May 2024 and 4 June 2024. HPS Pharmacies will provide further details once they are available.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units until supplies return to normal. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Accord Healthcare on 1800 222 673, or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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HPS Pharmacies wish to give notice that Medsurge is updating the packaging of their hydromorphone ampoules as follows:
Medsurge Hydromorphone Ampoules
Hydromorphone hydrochloride 2 mg/1 mL
ARTG 309688
The new packaging will be introduced from 1 June 2024. It features colour-coded labelling to allow for easier identification, potentially reducing the risk of selection errors. An example of the outer packaging is shown below, further information is available from Medsurge.
Important: Hydromorphone is a high-risk medication. Always read the label carefully rather than relying on packaging or label recognition when selecting this product.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units for one month. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Medsurge on 1300 788 261 or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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HPS Pharmacies wish to advise that Pfizer is experiencing an intermittent supply interruption for Solu-Cortef® as follows:
Solu-Cortef® Act-O-Vial
Hydrocortisone (as sodium succinate) 250mg
ARTG 167894
Normal supplies are expected to resume by late September 2024. Alternate presentations that remain available are Solu-Cortef® Act-O-Vial 100mg and Solu-Cortef® Vial 100mg.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units until supplies return to normal. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Pfizer on 1800 629 921, or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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HPS Pharmacies wishes to advise that Sanofi Australia is experiencing a supply interruption for Clexane® 60mg injection syringes as follows:
Clexane® Pre-filled Syringes
Enoxaparin sodium 60mg/0.6mL
ARTG 56709
Normal supplies of Clexane® 60mg are expected to return by 5 June 2024. All other strengths of Clexane® and Clexane® Forte remain available.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units, until supplies return to normal. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Sanofi Australia on 1800 640 791, or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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HPS Pharmacies wishes to advise that Sanofi Pharmaceuticals are discontinuing ketoprofen capsules as follows:
Oruvail® SR Capsules
Ketoprofen 200mg
ARTG 42422
Orudis® SR Capsules
Ketoprofen 200mg
ARTG 27535
Sanofi estimates that supplies of each brand will be depleted by December 2024.
There is no direct equivalent product available in Australia. Patients are encouraged to speak with their prescriber regarding appropriate clinical alternatives.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units for at least one month. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Sanofi Pharmaceuticals on 1800 641 791 or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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Further to DrugAlert Volume 929, HPS Pharmacies wish to advise that Bristol-Myers Squibb is experiencing a supply interruption for Orencia® as follows:
Orencia® ClickJect®
Abatacept 125mg
ARTG 236039
Orencia® Prefilled Syringe
Abatacept 125mg
ARTG 206764
Normal supplies of Orencia® ClickJect® are expected to return by end-August 2024, and Orencia® prefilled syringes are expected to return by end-September 2024.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) advises that some patients may need to be switched to other therapies. To conserve Orencia® for patients who cannot switch to an alternative treatment, Bristol-Myers Squibb has created an Orencia® Stock Hypercare Plan (OSHP) to manage supply. The TGA provides more information on the OSHP plan.
Recommendations from the Australian Rheumatology Association include:
- No new patients should be started on subcutaneous or intravenous abatacept;
- Patients should be switched to an alternative biological or targeted synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (b/tsDMARD) where possible; and
- Stock should be conserved for patients who have previously used two other b/tsDMARDs, or have a relative or absolute contraindication to other b/tsDMARDs.
Patients using Orencia® should be encouraged to speak to their prescriber as soon as possible.
This supply issue only affects the subcutaneous presentations of Orencia®. Bristol-Myers Squibb advises that there is sufficient stock of Orencia® 250mg vials for intravenous infusion to support patients currently receiving it.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units until supplies return to normal. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Bristol-Myers Squibb on 1800 067 567, or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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HPS Pharmacies wishes to advise that there is a supply interruption for octreotide ampoules as follows:
| Product |
ARTG |
Anticipated availability |
| Octreotide GH 50 micrograms/1 mL |
148404 |
Early March 2025* |
| Octreotide GH 100 micrograms/1 mL |
148402 |
End May 2024 |
| Octreotide GH 500 micrograms/1 mL |
14803 |
End December 2024 |
| Sandostatin® 50 microgram/1mL |
42192 |
Presently* |
| Sandostatin® 100 microgram/1mL |
42193 |
Mid-June 2024 |
*Limited Octreotide GH 50 mcg/1 mL stock is currently available in some states. However, a long-term supply interruption is expected to affect all states from late May 2024 until early March 2025. Warehouse supplies of Sandostatin® 50 mcg/1mL are currently being replenished and are expected to be available shortly.
An internationally registered alternative of each strength is awaiting final approval from the TGA for supply under Section 19A of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989. The S19A alternative brand is Octreotide Acetate Omega (Canada), and stock is expected to be released by mid to late May 2024. This product is supplied as vials which are labelled for subcutaneous and intravenous use. The Australian product information should be referred to for dosing and administration recommendations.
Octreotide modified-release injection (Sandostatin® LAR) is not affected by this notice.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units until supplies return to normal. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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Further to DrugAlert Volume 930, HPS Pharmacies wish to provide an update on the action required for the product defect correction and recall of Panadol® Children 1 Month – 1 Year:
Panadol Children 1 Month – 1 Year
Paracetamol 100 mg/mL
ARTG 83363
The following batches are affected by this notice:
- DR562 (Exp 30/04/2024)
- DR563 (Exp 30/04/2024)
- DT528 (Exp 30/04/2024)
- DS947 (Exp 31/07/2024)
- DS956 (Exp 31/08/2024)
- DT334 (Exp 30/09/2024)
- DT469 (Exp 30/09/2024)
- DT762 (Exp 31/10/2024)
- DT912 (Exp 31/10/2024)
- DU128 (Exp 30/11/2024)
- DT913 (Exp 31/10/2024)
- DW301 (Exp 28/02/2025)
- DW507 (Exp 28/02/2025)
- DW487 (Exp 28/02/2025)
This defect correction was initiated as the supplied dosing syringe may be stiff and difficult to use. This may make it difficult to control the delivery of the medicine and may pose a risk of choking. There are no safety or quality problems with the liquid medicine itself.
Action required:
- Affected stock located within pharmacies should be quarantined for return to the supplier.
- Imprest stock from the affected batches may continue to be used. However, the supplied dosing syringe must be discarded and replaced with an appropriate alternative.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units for one month. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Haleon on 1800 028 533 or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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HPS Pharmacies wish to give notice that Seqirus Pty, in consultation with the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), has issued a product defect correction for Ryaltris® nasal spray, as follows:
Ryaltris Nasal Spray
Olopatadine 600mcg + Mometasone furoate 25mcg/actuation
ARTG 312690
The following batches are affected by this notice:
| 240 Metered Dose Spray |
56 Metered Dose Spray |
- 12230928 (Expiry 08/2026)
- 12230929 (Expiry 08/2026)
- 12230941 (Expiry 08/2026)
- 12231020 (Expiry 09/2026)
- 12231116 (Expiry 10/2026)
|
- 12231020 (Expiry 09/2026)
- 12230943 (Expiry 0/2026)
|
This defect correction was initiated due to a technical labelling issue. The batch number and expiry date on the affected batches can be smudged or blurred upon contact with an alcohol-based solvent.
Seqirus advises customers to:
- Ensure that alcohol-based sanitisers or wipes do not come into contact with the bottle label; and
- Retain the carton for the duration of use to maintain a durable record of the batch number and expiry details.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units for one month. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Seqirus on 1800 008 275 or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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HPS Pharmacies wish to give notice that Haleon Australia, in consultation with the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), has issued a product defect correction and recall for Panadol® Children 1 Month – 1 Year, as follows:
Panadol Children 1 Month – 1 Year
Paracetamol 100 mg/mL
ARTG 83363
The following batches are affected by this notice:
- DR562 (Exp 30/04/2024)
- DR563 (Exp 30/04/2024)
- DT528 (Exp 30/04/2024)
- DS947 (Exp 31/07/2024)
- DS956 (Exp 31/08/2024)
- DT334 (Exp 30/09/2024)
- DT469 (Exp 30/09/2024)
- DT762 (Exp 31/10/2024)
- DT912 (Exp 31/10/2024)
- DU128 (Exp 30/11/2024)
- DT913 (Exp 31/10/2024)
- DW301 (Exp 28/02/2025)
- DW507 (Exp 28/02/2025)
- DW487 (Exp 28/02/2025)
This defect correction was initiated as the supplied dosing syringe may be stiff and difficult to use. This may make it difficult to control the delivery of the medicine and may pose a risk of choking. There are no safety or quality problems with the liquid medicine itself.
Please inspect your stock and quarantine all affected products. If HPS Pharmacies provide imprest management services to your facility, an HPS representative will inspect all stock stored in the designated imprest areas at the earliest opportunity. All affected products will be quarantined for return to the supplier, and HPS Pharmacies will arrange for replacement stock as soon as possible. An HPS Pharmacies staff member will contact senior medical and nursing staff if there is an immediate impact to your facility.
Retain this notice in a prominent position, including in other related business units for one month. Report any problems identified with medicines, vaccines or medical devices to the TGA.
Should you require further information regarding this matter, please contact Haleon on 1800 028 533 or your pharmacist at HPS Pharmacies.
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