21-st of May 2019

On 25-th and 26-th of April 2019, in the historical premises of the Collegium Maius and the Collegium Nowodworskiego, there was held the “Workshop on Scope and Methodology of Drug Shortages Research”, attended by researchers from 14 countries (Croatia, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom). The workshop has provided a platform for the exchange of knowledge and discussions on the planning and conduct of research projects on the increasingly severe phenomenon of drug shortages in local and international markets. This is associated with numerous risks, both for individual patients and for public health, as well as the whole health care systems.

The workshop participants represented a diverse scientific community and an interdisciplinary approach to the research on drug shortages (including pharmacy, medicine, industrial and materials engineering, computer science and modelling, economics and management, health economics and pharmacoeconomics, methodology of quantitative and qualitative research). The perspective of patients and their associations was also represented.

The workshop was opened by Prof. Marek Sanak, Representative of the Rector of the Jagiellonian University for Research and Development at the Medical College and Prof. Tomasz Brzostek, Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences of the Jagiellonian University Medical College. The workshop was organized as part of the international project – COST CA15105 – European Medicines Shortages Research Network – addressing supply problems to patients (Medicines Shortages). The Grant Holder of this project is the Jagiellonian University Medical College, the Management Committee Chair is Dr Tomasz Bochenek of the Institute of Public Health of the Faculty of Health Sciences, and the Grant Manager is Ms Katarzyna Gubernat of the Unit of Administrative Projects Support and International Cooperation of the Jagiellonian University Medical College.

Organizing the workshop was possible not only thanks to the international cooperation, but also thanks to the inter-faculty cooperation within the Jagiellonian University, as well as the inter-generational cooperation. Apart from experienced researchers, the workshop was also attended by PhD students and master’s degree students interested in drug shortages research. Apart from those mentioned above, the Jagiellonian University was represented by: Dr habil. Agnieszka Skowron of the Faculty of Pharmacy, Dr Weronika Kałwak of the Institute of Psychology of the Faculty of Philosophy, Dr Ewa Kocot of the Institute of Public Health of the Faculty of Health Sciences, Dr Katarzyna Zawisza of the Chair of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine of the Faculty of Medicine, Dr habil. Paweł Kawalec, prof. JU of the Institute of Public Health of the Faculty of Health Sciences and Ms Berenika Kuna, MPH student of the same institute.

The Krakow workshop was preceded by the meetings of the Management Committee and three Working Groups of CA15105, which were organised a month earlier (12-th and 13-th of March 2019) in Brussels (premises of the European Association of Euro-Pharmaceutical Companies) and Leuven (University of Leuven). The Management Committee Members represent 29 (soon to be 30) countries. Almost 250 researchers and other professionals, representing practically all kinds of stakeholders of the health care systems, have participated in the project so far.

More information about the project can be found at:

websites:

https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA15105

http://www.medicinesshortages.eu/

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/medsshortages

Prepared by: Tomasz Bochenek