By Karen Kier
Pharmacist on behalf of the ONU HealthWise team

In 1959, Peter Seeger wrote To Everything There is a Season, which was released by the folk group the Limeliters. Seeger then released the song himself a few months later. Neither version had much success until Roger McGuinn (aka Jim McGuinn) of the Limeliters formed the Byrds. 

The Byrds released their version on October 23, 1965 and it hit number one in December. The title changed to Turn! Turn! Turn! for the release. The song holds the record for the oldest written lyrics because the verses are from Ecclesiastes in the Bible. 

The Byrds formed in 1964 in Los Angeles with five members. Some music critics consider the band one of the most influential of its time. Several of the original members left to form other groups or have solo careers. One of the more famous members of the original group was David Crosby, who we lost in 2023. The last time the original group played together was in 1991 when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

As the leaves are changing, so do our seasons including issues related to politics and health. 

The political season is in full swing with the 2024 elections. One topic tossed out recently is the current problem with drug shortages. There has been blame passed around as though this is a new issue. It is not!  This is an ongoing problem in the US with a significant impact on certain diseases such as cancer.

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists in conjunction with the University of Utah Hospital Drug Information Service provide a tracking service on drug shortages to keep healthcare professionals up to date. The peak of the drug shortage problem occurred during the Obama administration and he approved rules and regulations to require more reporting by manufacturers when problems were developing.

Recently, some political candidates have targeted the Biden administration claiming the drug shortage is at an all time high. This is actually misinformation. The number of drug shortages and the percentage of new shortages were actually higher under both the Obama and Trump administrations. 

It is important to note that no one presidential administration can be responsible for controlling the drug shortage problem. Unfortunately, the drug shortage issue is caused by many different factors. These factors can include lack of raw materials, manufacturers not passing quality inspections, weather conditions, company bankruptcy, and restricting imported products.

In July of 2023, the Rocky Mount, North Carolina Pfizer plant was hit by a tornado and it closed the facility. The company announced production had started back on September 25, 2023 again. The FDA has recalled or barred some medications due to poor manufacturing quality and this has included both drugs produced overseas as well as in the US. We often do not realize the full extent of how the FDA protects us from poor quality products. 

Speaking of protection. 

Governor DeWine signed House Bill 341 on September 16, 2020 to allow better access to naloxone often referred to by the brand name Narcan®. This improved access in public areas including school districts has had an impact in Ohio. Considering the opioid crisis in the United States, Ohio is one of only a few states seeing a decline in opioid deaths. 

Project DAWN is one resource for Ohioans for training and access to naloxone including Ohio Northern University’s College of Pharmacy. Contact the local or state health departments for more information on naloxone or Project DAWN. 

The flu, RSV, and COVID-19 season is still with us! 

The CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) issued a study evaluating RSV severity and high impact groups at risk. Even though there are fewer hospitalizations for RSV compared to flu and COVID-19, the risk of severe disease is higher in RSV cases. COVID-19 was responsible for 81.8% of hospitalizations compared to 12.9% with the flu and 5.3% for RSV.

In the study, RSV had the more severe outcomes especially in those over the age of 75 years. The average ages in the MMWR study were 72 for RSV, 74 for COVID-19, and 71 for the flu. Besides age as a risk factor for severe RSV, other risks included individuals with lung disease, heart disease, past stroke, diabetes, and/or kidney disease. If you have any of these risk factors, talk to your healthcare provider about the RSV vaccine.

Flu season is coming and has hit the southern states already. Ohio is considered minimal risk for the flu right now, but this will change in the next few months. The flu vaccine studies from the Southern Hemisphere show very good results with the 2023-2024 flu vaccine. It takes 2 weeks after receiving the vaccine for full protection. 

COVID-19 hospital admissions in our area are ranging between 4.7 to 7.4 cases per every 100,000 people. Omicron is the circulating variant with very fast infection rates. Monovalent Omicron vaccines are available now. 

Don’t turn, turn, turn away from the seasonal changes, but let us protect ourselves!

ONU HealthWise is offering the flu vaccines. The pharmacy has Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines. The pharmacy opens at 9 a.m. and closes at 6 p.m., but is closed from 1 to 2 p.m. Vaccine clinics are Monday through Friday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. 

ONU HealthWise Pharmacy
419-772-3784