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Editorial: Student Pharmacist Compounding Competition (SPCC) 2014: University of Colorado Skaggs School of Pharmacy Wins Overall

On the weekend of March 22nd-23rd, 2014, the University of Florida College of Pharmacy hosted the 4th annual Student Pharmacist Compounding Competition (SPCC), an event that is both organized and sponsored by MEDISCA, Inc. MEDISCA Inc., an industry leader that is invested in the future of the pharmacy compounding industry, prides itself on the SPCC to provide pharmacy students a forum of expression as newcomers to the compounding pharmacy community, while encouraging them to step forward, take a stand, and become leaders in the industry.

Nineteen teams of pharmacy students from National Colleges or Schools of Pharmacy competed in three interrelated competition platforms, which included a laboratory component, a quality component, and a regulatory component. The leader of both the laboratory and quality component was the University of Colorado Skaggs School of Pharmacy, and the front-runner of the regulatory component was the South Carolina College of Pharmacy - University of South Carolina Campus.

Following two days of intense competition, the University of Colorado Skaggs School of Pharmacy accumulated the highest overall score, earning them the title of SPCC 2014 Champions. The University of Texas at Austin College of Pharmacy and the University of Washington School of Pharmacy were ranked second and third, respectively, in the overall compounding competition.

On a personal note, this was my second opportunity of joining the competing teams of pharmacy students and some outstanding faculty and compounding pharmacy leaders at the competition.


Loyd V. Allen, Jr., PhD, RPh
Editor-in-Chief
International Journal of Pharmaceutical Compounding
Remington: The Science and Practice of Pharmacy Twenty-second edition

Nitroglycerin Injection is in Short Supply
Nitroglycerin is a front-line drug that is often the first thing doctors try when a patient shows up with a heart attack. It was shocking news when Baxter, the country's only manufacturer of injectable nitroglycerin, recently told hospitals that it was sharply cutting shipments of the drug. Hospitals have been struggling for years with intermittent shortages of the drug and now are worried they could actually run out. The FDA's and Baxter's assurances that they were taking steps to ease the shortage offered small comfort. The nitroglycerin shortage is the latest example of how patchy the supply of some of the nation's most critical drugs has become in recent years. Baxter has been the sole supplier since last year, and last year it limited hospitals to 40% of their usual orders; this month, their allotment would be reduced even further, to 20%.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/26/business/nitroglycerin-a-staple-of-emergency-rooms-is-in-short-supply.html?ref=health&_r=0

FDA Disputes Study and Says Generics from Abroad Safe
The FDA is discrediting research published a year ago that found impurities in dozens of generic cardiovascular drugs made overseas, saying the investigators contaminated the samples during their testing. The study was one of the first independent probes into these drugs. Janet Woodcock, the FDA's lead drug reviewer, said the research team "didn't use the proper method to extract the active ingredient" from samples "and therefore contaminated it themselves." Woodcock said a soon-to-be-published study by the FDA on cardiovascular drugs used a different testing approach, and it failed to find contaminants in samples from the U.S., Canada, India, and Slovenia.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-25/disputing-study-u-s-fda-says-generics-from-abroad-safe.html

Chinese Toddlers Receive Unauthorized Medications to Boost School Attendance!
A nationwide inspection of schools has begun because of rising public anger at news that many educational institutions secretly gave children medications to ward off illnesses and boost attendance. No deaths have been reported. Reports were received revealing that at least six kindergartens in three provinces gave toddlers a cheap antiviral drug without informing their parents. Some kindergartens have been reported to have done this for years to reduce sick leave and avoid having to pay refunds for the children's absence; schools get paid based on attendance. Parents have taken to the street to demand a thorough probe and stiff punishment for the offenders. "We only have one child, and you fed them with a banned drug," read one banner carried by protesters. This reflects a particular anxiety of many Chinese couples that are restricted by strict rules to having only one child.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/21/us-china-health-idUSBREA2K0AV20140321

Terra-Medica Recalls Drug Product for Undeclared Penicillin
Terra-Medica has recalled 56 lots of homeopathic drug products due to the presence of penicillin that is not declared on the label. No reports of adverse reactions have been reported to date. The recalled products are Pleo-FORT, Pleo-QUENT, Pleo-NOT, Pleo-STOLO, Pleo-NOTA-QUENT, and Pleo-EX homeopathic drug products, in liquid, tablet, capsules, ointment, and suppository forms.
http://foodpoisoningbulletin.com/2014/terra-medica-realls-dietary-supplements-for-undeclared-penicillin/

Some Doxil Released by J&J
J&J has struggled to provide supplies of Doxil. It has released a new lot of the popular drug produced through an "alternative manufacturing approach," in which the now-closed Ben Venue plant in Ohio made the bulk product and another manufacturer finished it off. While the FDA has yet to sign off on the two-facility process, it did clear the lot of Doxil for distribution. The batch received a full review to ensure that it met all its quality and safety standards.
http://www.doxil.com/sites/default/files/DOXIL_DHCP_Letter.pdf?q=0

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PCAB is proud to announce the accreditation of the following pharmacy:

Pfizer New Haven Clinical Research Unit, New Haven, Connecticut; Janyce Rogers, PharmD, janyce.rogers@pfizer.com. Initial Accreditation for Sterile & Nonsterile Compounding