Campaign call over internet drug dangers

PHARMACISTS have called for a public campaign to highlight the dangers of buying drugs over the internet, following an investigation by The Irish Examiner.

The Irish Pharmaceutical Union (IPU), which represents 1,600 pharmacies, said families are putting their lives at risk by buying medicines on the internet

Last month a two-part investigation by the Irish Examiner highlighted:

* How easy it is to buy medicines online without prescriptions, doctors’ check-ups or any effective safeguards.

* How drugs arrived from India, Fiji and islands in the Pacific Ocean unchecked.

* The lack of safeguards and quality control.

Dan Ahern, a pharmacist from Farranfore, Co Kerry, said some people wrongly believed medicines bought over the internet were cheaper.

He said a series of articles recently published in the Irish Examiner had shown this was not the case.

Mr Ahern said people would continue to buy medicines online until the dangers are communicated to them in a public awareness campaign.

“We are calling on the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE) to organise this campaign to ensure that lives are not lost.

“The operators of these websites have no regard for patient safety or the quality of medicines that they sell. There is no comeback for the patient when something goes wrong.”

Meanwhile, the IPU has also accused Justice Minister Michael McDowell of failing to stem a surge in the number of violent attacks on pharmacies.

There were 91 burglaries and attacks on pharmacies last year.

Most were violent in nature with staff threatened with iron bars, knives and guns. In one case a security guard was stabbed.

Paddy Hickey, from Co Kerry, who operates 26 pharmacies around the country, said nine of his pharmacies had been attacked in the past seven months.

Speaking in advance of tomorrow’s meeting, Mr Hickey said increased garda visibility around pharmacies and stricter bail conditions for known offenders were needed to deal with the situation.

“We have been scourged with attacks recently, to the point where it is becoming almost impossible to operate a pharmacy in certain parts of Dublin,” he said.

The annual general meeting in Athlone, Co Westmeath, will hear a number of motions calling for Mr McDowell address the security threat to pharmacies.