Limit on paracetamol sales
One of the country’s two major supermarket chains is limiting the sale of paracetamol to one pack per customer, following a student’s accidental fatal overdose.
Alannah Lee Spankie, 20, was found unresponsive in her Dunedin flat in June 20, 2017, about three days after overdosing on a large, but unknown, quantity of paracetamol.
She died in hospital the next morning from acute liver failure.
Coroner David Robinson ruled she did not intend to take her own life. He wants paracetamol sales at supermarkets limited to one packet at a time.
Yesterday, Countdown announced all stores nationwide were limiting the sale of paracetamol and items containing paracetamol to one pack per customer, following the coroner’s recommendations.
In New Zealand, supermarkets can legally sell paracetamol without any limit on how many packets people can buy at one time.
Countdown’s head pharmacist, Jeremy Armes, said the company had been considering how it could help make the sale of the country’s most popular medicine safer.
‘‘Paracetamol is an incredibly useful and effective medicine but, as with all medicines, it also needs to be respected and treated with care.
‘‘Where a customer may wish to buy larger quantities of paracetamol or items containing paracetamol, we think this is best sold in a pharmacy environment where a pharmacist can talk through the proper use of paracetamol and risks one to one.’’
Armes said there was no doubt mental health awareness, education and good medical support were going to make the biggest difference for those suffering from mental illness.
‘‘However, there are also significant and sometimes tragic consequences of overdose, whether that is accidental or intentional. ‘‘Anything we can do to reduce this risk is important.’’
Spankie’s father, Mark Spankie, said the news was ‘‘a step in the right direction’’. ‘‘It is just awesome that there is some progress and people are open to it, that is great. If it prevents one other person going through what we are going through that is great.’’
The Medicines Classification Committee (MCC), chaired by Ministry of Health clinical chief adviser Andi Shirtcliffe, earlier rejected the coroner’s recommendation of putting limits on quantities sold at pharmacies and other outlets. The MCC is set to discuss the coroner’s recommendations at an upcoming meeting.
‘‘The MCC has the ability to recommend limiting the total dosage of paracetamol per packet. However, any changes in classification would not enable a limit on the number of packs sold in a single purchase,’’ a Ministry of Health spokesman said on Tuesday.
The coroner said that while Spankie deliberately took an ‘‘excess quantity’’ of paracetamol, he did not believe she did so with the intention of ending her life.
Food and Grocery Council chief executive Katherine Rich earlier said the coroner’s report was ‘‘heartbreaking reading’’ but she doubted any paracetamol sale restrictions could have prevented Spankie’s death.
‘‘[The coroner’s] suggestions are wellintentioned but not practical,’’ she said.
‘‘Education, reading labels, better medical and mental health support are more likely to make a difference for patients at risk.’’