The clock is ticking down for Gary Norris's elderly and ailing father.
Two weeks after being assured a supply problem had been resolved, he is still scrambling to find a drug called Midodrine, which his 92-year-old father, Charles, needs for his kidney failure. "After two weeks, the local drug stores are still not able to pick up the product," said Norris, who has spent six anxious months trying to find a secure supply of the medication. "At this point, I'm very disappointed and getting worried. I've got a father in hospital for three weeks because he is (also) having trouble keeping food down."However, Norman Paul, president of AA Pharma, which manufactures Midodrine, said his company is once again providing the medication to its clients."We've been shipping it to wholesalers for more than a week," he told The Mirror Wednesday, Aug. 25.Two weeks ago, he blamed a "production issue" for keeping Midodrine off pharmacy shelves, but said shipment of the drug would resume within days.Norris said he and other dialysis patients at The Scarborough Hospital were elated to hear the supply would soon be back to normal.Unfortunately, after checking with both small drug stores and a large pharmacy chain, Norris said he still can't get his hands on Midodrine.He has enough for his father until Sept. 4.After that, there is a good chance his father will become seriously ill or even die."He is anxious about the whole thing because he knows what the end result will be if we don't get it. Death," Norris said.Midodrine helps raise and regulate blood pressure for dialysis patients and people with other conditions such as arthritis.It is "sole source" drug, meaning it is the only medication available to treat the conditions it is used for.Midodrine is the generic version of the drug, although the brand name is not readily available in Canada, meaning Midodrine is virtually the only option. Dr. Paul Tam, medical director of The Scarborough Hospital's dialysis unit, said doctors have been concerned about the reduced supply of Midodrine and other drugs recently. "The thing is there are a number of drugs in the past few months that we have noticed. Older drugs that are used by a limited number of patients. That (Midodrine) is one of them. We are scurrying around to try to find substitutes, but sometimes it is not that easy," he told The Mirror earlier this month."Right now, we are getting to the last of the (Midodrine) supply. Our group of doctors are going to have a meeting at the end of the month. Is there a substitute? And if there is no substitute, how do we address it?"Without Midodrine, doctors would have to alter patients' dialysis routines, having them have shorter, but more frequent sessions, Tam said.