Hospitals have just one month drug supply

01:49 AEDT Thu Sep 29 2011

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Many Australian hospitals may have just a month's supply of life-saving medicines, a new study has found.

A new analysis suggests many opioid painkillers, anaesthetics, HIV drugs and chemotherapy drugs are stocked at less than 30 days' supply in hospitals, Fairfax Newspapers reported on Thursday.

This leaves patients vulnerable if local distributors are unable to import them through fragile international supply chains.

Earlier this week, it emerged sole supplier CSL would be unable to import intravenous penicillin until December.

The new conclusions are based on an audit of hospital pharmacies in the Hunter, carried out by Newcastle doctor Simon Quilty.

It found that out of 378 medicines classed as essential under World Health Organisation criteria, a quarter were stocked at less than a month's reserve.

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