Pharmacies abandon pseudoephedrine

Tegan Fleming

Margot Kliendienst, proprietor of Little Mountain Auscare Pharmacy on the Sunshine Coast, said her pharmacy had been broken into a total of four times, three in the last six months alone.

"The very first time we got broken into, cough and cold [medication] was all they took; they just grabbed the whole section," she said.

After that, Ms Kliendienst cut down on stocks of pseudoephedrine, keeping only one pack of each product on the shelf, plus a small amount of extra stock out the back.

"The second time, they knew exactly what they wanted; they even knew which was the phenylephrine," she said.

This prompted Ms Kliendienst, along with the rest of the Auscare group, to remove pseudoephedrine-containing products altogether, ordering them in only for same-day special order collections or deliveries.

"We've got to the stage where we're worried about getting held up, which has happened in Brisbane.

"Professionally, I would like to have kept stocking pseudoephedrine, but when you're getting targeted all the time it gets to the stage where you think 'we've got to make a decision to get rid of it'. You just get sick of it.

"We haven't had any problems selling phenylephrine. We do have a couple of people who suffer regularly from sinus who say they find the pseudoephedrine better, but I order it in for them and that's not been a problem so far."

However, Tim Logan, president of the Queensland branch of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, said removing pseudoephedrine was not the answer.

"I guess that's a decision people have got to make but I don't agree with it. I empathise, but I think that the more rational thing, both therapeutically and commercially, is to keep stocking pseudoephedrine products.

"I think pseudoephedrine is a more effective drug and it's a scheduled medicine, which means it's only available in pharmacies.

"From a purely business point of view, I question the wisdom of recommending a product that's readily available in supermarkets," Mr Logan said.

He said pharmacies should continue to use Project STOP and regularly review stock levels and security.
Ms Kliendienst said she had been using Project STOP and following advice in the Queensland Guild's guide, Pseudoephedrine-related break and enters: 10 practical tips to reduce your risks.

"We've implemented everything on that plan. I've upgraded everything. I've got the most sophisticated cameras, lighting, everything - and they [the burglars] didn't care.

"They came in all in black with balaclavas. We got glass detectors so that the minute the glass is touched the alarms go off, but they're in and out within a minute and a half; they're obviously professionals."

Mr Logan said the Guild was in the process of developing a secure display module for storing pseudoephedrine that can be locked down at night and bolted to the floor.

He said the units should be ready for unveiling at APP next month.