Providers ramp up preparation for drug shortages

Modern Healthcare: Cleveland Clinic's pharmacists have standing weekly meetings with nurses, physicians, anesthesiologists, supply chain administrators and other staff to discuss how the system will address current and potential drug shortages.

But after Hurricane Maria crippled the primary manufacturer of small-volume saline bags, that process hit overdrive as they convened daily, if not hourly. They brainstormed how they could repackage what they already had, potential substitutes and how to best ration their three-week supply of saline—one of the most widely used drugs in hospitals.

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