In Anke Rüdinger’s (37) Castello pharmacy, fever juice is produced on demand Photo: Olaf Selchow
By Sara Orlos Fernandes
Fever juices with the active ingredients paracetamol and ibuprofen are currently in short supply. So that sick children can still be cared for, some pharmacies mix the painkiller and antipyretic themselves.
Babies and small children in particular are dependent on painkillers in liquid form. Tablets can only be administered from the age of four and a half. That is why the juice is now made in-house in the Castello pharmacy on Landsberger Allee if required. The solution required for this was pre-produced over the Christmas holidays. Time required for the fever juice base: one and a half hours. It takes another 25 minutes to mix the liquid with commercially available painkillers. And that has its price.
Paracetamol tablets are used to make the fever juice Photo: Olaf Selchow
While commercial antipyretics cost around five euros, the juice you make yourself costs 15 euros. “The health insurance companies cover the costs. With some health insurance companies, however, it is necessary for the doctor to prescribe the drug on the prescription as a prescription,” says Anke Rüdinger (57), chairwoman of the Berlin Pharmacists’ Association.
Step 1: Nine commercially available paracetamol tablets are weighed. In the end, one milliliter of finished juice should contain 40 milligrams of active ingredient Photo: Olaf Selchow
In her pharmacy in Lichtenberg there are still a few commercially available fever syrups, but they are scarce. Unsure when the next delivery will arrive. That’s why the juices are only sold on prescription. This is how hamster purchases should be prevented.
Step 2: The tablets are individually ground into a fine powder in a mortar and pestle Photo: Olaf Selchow
Step 3: The powder is placed in a bowl and gradually mixed with the previously produced liquid of glucose, cellulose and water. At the end, a few drops of orange flavor are added so that the juice does not taste bitter Photo: Olaf Selchow
But why are the current bottlenecks occurring at all? For Rüdinger, in addition to the increased demand, the main reason is the price. The health insurance companies determine the fixed amounts for medicines and pay less and less for them. So it is no longer economical for the manufacturers to produce the juices, which are more expensive to produce. The pharmacist on the BZ: “In addition, a German company stopped production in May of this year. There are only two manufacturers in Germany who produce paracetamol juices.”
Step 4: The finished juice is poured into a glass bottle and then labeled. The painkiller has a shelf life of one month now Photo: Olaf Selchow
Even if not all pharmacies can afford to personally produce the juice, experts expressly warn against producing it at home.