3 2 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • A U G U S T 2 0 1 9
I
n the early morning hours of Sept. 20, 2017, Hurricane
Maria slammed into the southeast coast of Puerto Rico and
tracked across the island with maximum sustained winds
of 155 mph, leaving a trail of catastrophic destruction in
its wake. The Category 4 cyclone knocked out the island's
power grid that ran the manufacturing plants of Baxter
International, a major supplier of IV saline bags used by healthcare
professionals across the United States to administer intravenous
drugs. Baxter's plants were offline for months, causing a severe
shortage of 50 ml and 100 ml IV bags. Production
volume of the bags is only now reaching pre-Maria
levels.
The historic hurricane was an obvious event
that slowed the flow of IV fluid to a trickle, but
other causes of drug shortages are more subtle — and more persist-
Empty
Running
on
Daniel Cook | Executive Editor
Don't let the drug shortage leave you hung out to dry.
Take these 5 steps to ensure limited supplies of
essential medications never impact patient care.
• GOOD TO THE LAST DRIP
A historic storm isn't the only
reason critical fluids and drugs
are seemingly in constant short supply.
