12/10/2026
Hello customers,
We hope you’re all well.
Currently, we at Elders and the pharmacy sector in general are experiencing medication shortages at an unprecedented level- something I myself haven’t seen in my nearly thirty years of being qualified.
As an example. Ramipril, Levothyroxine and duloxetine are not available with any of our wholesalers. And when they do, the price is significantly higher than what the government reimburse us at. Ramipril 10mg capsules for instance, when it does become available is listed at £6.69, whereas the government will only reimburse us £4.65 resulting in just over a £2 loss per box upon dispensing. And when you consider the volume dispensed, that’s a considerable hit for small independent pharmacies to absorb.
It’s also been bought to my attention today, that some of my staff have received abuse for these out of stocks. Let me reiterate, we’re at the tail end of the supply chain. You, the patient are the end point. Before us, you have the wholesalers, distributors and manufacturers. The out of stocks are way beyond our control.
My staff are working tirelessly for the community and if you know them well, they care passionately about you, the patients. For them to be hit with a barrage of abuse will certainly not be tolerated from myself and them. Anyone doing so would be welcome to try elsewhere for their medication at no great loss to us.
In the meantime, we’ll keep trying. We might not get it right at the start, but we’ll never give up.
As we now approach a busy period for community pharmacy, all we ask is for your kindness and patience.
Over and out x
