COVID-19 Medication Management at Hotspot Hospitals

Erin R. Fox, PharmD, BCPS, FASHP, Senior Director Drug Information and Support Services, University of Utah Health, Benjamin Pennell, PharmD, MS, Manager Central Pharmacy Operations, Massachusetts General Hospital, Sharon Higgins, RPh, Clinical Informatics Pharmacist, Torrance Memorial Medical Center, and David Berkowitz, PharmD, Performance Center Field Consultant, Omnicell.

Epicenter and hotspot hospitals are using nearly 75+ different drugs to treat COVID-19 patients. Many of them are in short supply as demand far outpaces industry’s ability to fill and ship orders. In other instances, red tape prevails. While the DEA and other governing bodies are relaxing restrictions to get the supply chain flowing, hospitals and health systems can take steps now with on-hand inventory of these critical drugs to improve visibility and inventory management without stockpiling and exacerbating nationwide drug shortage issues.