Compounding the problem (in a good way): How one company is helping with children’s pain and fever relief shortage

As pharmaceutical companies continue to try and fix the shortage of children’s pain and fever medications—with many citing lack of raw ingredients as one reason for the shortage—an Edmonton startup is delivering relief to kids and their parents through an online platform that connects drug prescribers to compounding pharmacists and labs throughout Alberta. Kemet Advanced Manufacturing Ltd., recently expanded the scope of its online platform, called KemNet, to allow prescribers to order liquid acetaminophen or ibuprofen, which will be custom-made by a compounding pharmacist or laboratory. The platform—which connects prescribers with 30 participating pharmacies and three compounding labs, spanning from Fort McMurray in northern Alberta to Lethbridge in the south—has previously focused on fulfilling custom orders for other medications. This launch of the pain medication ordering page, called shortages.kemnet.ca, marks the first time the company has used KemNet to respond to a drug shortage. “Children not having access to pain medication and fever medication in this time, at this season just seems unacceptable," said Morenike Eniola Olaosebikan, founder and CEO of Kemet, which is described on its website as a “pharmaceutical factory in a box” that solves drug shortages in “low-resource settings” with modular, prefabricated drug manufacturing facilities that can be shipped easily to any part of the world. Read: Forget that prescription: Pharmacists can offer solutions to kids' pain reliever shortage In addition to these pre-fabricated manufacturing facilities, Kemet provides simple molecular medication as well as its online platform, KemNet. The latter has come into the spotlight lately, thanks to the ongoing shortages of children’s over-the-counter pain and fever remedies. "I really wish more people would know that this is an option," Olaosebikan, who is a licensed pharmacist, told CTV News. "We were able to find compounders who sourced the ingredients and we're ready to supply any pharmacy or Alberta or Canadian in need.” So far, compounding laboratories have had no problems sourcing the materials needed to make the pain medications, added Olaosebikan, who said she plans to expand the business across North America over the next three years. Read: U.K. pharmacists warn that drug shortages have put patients at risk Jody Shkrobot, clinical assistant professor with the University of Alberta’s faculty of pharmacy and pharmaceutical science, noted that unlike drug manufacturing—which is federally regulated—compounding is controlled at the provincial level. Compounders also have the ability to get ingredients from different sources. “That may give them a little bit more flexibility than, say, some of the larger manufacturers,” Shkrobot added. At KemNet, compounders fulfilling orders for children’s pain and fever relief use formulas similar to what name brands like Advil and Tylenol use. Drug prescribers such as physicians, nurse practitioners and pharmacists can order these medications in syrup, gummy or chewable tablet form. Their orders—which are fulfilled within 24 hours—are sent to pharmacists registered on KemNet, who will then contact the prescriber to confirm the order before sending it to a compounding lab. Read: Opportunities in compounding for community pharmacists Patients can also order directly through KemNet. Once they enter their information, a pharmacist will follow up to assess their order, said Olaosebikan, who came up with the idea for KemNet during a trip to Africa in 2018, when she travelled through the continent to learn more about drug equity and access during drug shortages. The platform is designed with a data analytics function that will allow it to predict when and where medication shortages are likely to happen, said Olaosebikan. As the number of orders through KemNet grows, the more predictive data it will have to pinpoint potential shortages. In the five days since the August 19 launch of KenMet’s pain medication order page, orders on the platform have tripled. “That’s what’s giving us the intel on how bad this Tylenol shortage is from the patient or customer side,” said Olaosebikan. Read: Canadian Blood Services in talks around paid donations of plasma as supply dwindles

Compounding the problem (in a good way): How one company is helping with children’s pain and fever relief shortage

Register for free access or login.

Related Topics