Testimonies. "It's really very difficult": These patients who suffer from the shortage of psychotropic drugs

Refilling her prescription at the pharmacy has become a source of "stress" for Pauline, originally from the Paris region. Like hundreds of thousands of people, this forty-year-old suffers from bipolar disorder. And like many patients, she is affected by the shortage of psychotropic medications that has affected France since the beginning of the year, forcing her to "anticipate" the renewal of her prescription as much as possible. Or to resort to a makeshift system with the members of her patient association: "We give each other boxes of medication."

Quetiapine, teralithe, sertraline, venlafaxine… Several drugs used in the treatment of schizophrenia, bipolar disorders, and depressive states are facing supply tensions “in a context of increasing consumption for several years,” confirms the ANSM (French National Agency for the Safety of Medicines). Added to this situation are “production difficulties of various origins.” For example, there was “a problem at the Greek factory” that manufactures 60% of the quetiapine distributed in France, coupled with a “packaging defect,” explains Lucie Bourdy-Dubois, a member of the national office of the FSPF (French Federation of Pharmaceutical Unions). As a result, there was a “shift in prescriptions for quetiapine to teralithe,” which itself faced a “raw material compliance problem.”

The pharmacist, who works in Nièvre, is categorical: "this is the first time" that psychotropic drugs have been affected by such shortages . She herself has already had to "call a doctor to change a treatment, because he was unavailable at the time." This is a difficult situation to manage for patients, who, like Pauline, sometimes take years to "find someone who stabilizes them properly." "It's really very difficult," laments the 41-year-old woman, especially for people in "states of extreme loneliness and despair." "There can be a sudden interruption of treatment," leading, "in the worst cases, to emergency hospitalizations and suicides," she warns.

Patrick (*), whose "bipolar partner could no longer find quetiapine," had to be hospitalized after "a week without medication (sic) ." "They gave her stronger treatment," he says, leaving her "completely drugged."

Generally speaking, "this shortage requires a certain amount of organization on the part of patients," observes Pauline. For example, she advises asking your pharmacist to consult the Vigirupture website, so that you can be directed to a pharmacy where the treatment is available. She herself is prepared to go to Belgium to get supplies, but says she feels "privileged" to have this possibility. "This shortage increases inequalities in access to care," she denounces.

The ANSM assures that it is deploying "all available levers" "to limit the impact of these tensions." In its latest update on September 4, the agency acknowledged that "local tensions may persist" over sertraline, but that stocks are "gradually being replenished." However, it reports "increased difficulties" for quetiapine (300 and 400 mg) and "significant" difficulties for teralith. As with venlafaxine, "an improvement is expected from October." However, it will take "several weeks before the drugs arrive in pharmacies," specifies Lucie Bourdy-Dubois.

(*) The first name has been changed.