Forum: Hospital did not have enough cancer medicine

I am having my cancer treated at the National University Cancer Institute, Singapore (NCIS) and I routinely collect my medication from the pharmacy after seeing my doctor.

When I tried to collect my prescribed medication last month, I was informed by the pharmacist that there were insufficient supplies to fill my prescription, which was to last 30 days.

I was dismayed to know this, as I had only a week's worth of medication left.

I was offered home delivery for the following week, but this did not materialise, as the supplies had not come in.

The hospital scheduled an urgent delivery, but this was for only a seven-day supply.

Unfortunately, this was not a one-off occurrence and the same has happened to me in the past.

Running out of medication can cause anxiety in a cancer patient.

It is unacceptable for a hospital to run out of cancer medication, as it puts a patient at risk of having no medicine to control the disease.

I understand that arranging these deliveries and ordering supplies are done manually.

Is that a contributing factor to the issue?

Perhaps NCIS needs to look at automating its processes to minimise such issues.

Patients need a reliable system to ensure that their needs are taken care of.

Hurng Yuhui

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