Pharmacy Pulse Report Q4 2022

Analysis of the key trends in the Irish Community Pharmacy sector, prepared by Fitzgerald Power on a quarterly basis.

Irish Economic Trends

Early estimates indicate that GDP in Ireland grew by an estimated 3.5% in Q4 2022, when compared with Q3 2022. GDP for the full year 2022 is estimated to have increased by 12.2%, when compared with 2021.

IPU Survey

A survey of pharmacists carried out by the Irish Pharmacy Union found six in 10 were concerned that difficulties in getting hold of key medicines was putting the health of patients at risk. The latest medicine shortage index shows there are 247 drugs out of stock, an increase of 19 medicines since the end of last month.

Global Economic Trends

The IMF’s World Economic Update project forecast that global growth will fall from an estimated 3.4% in 2022 to 2.9% in 2023, then rise to 3.1% in 2024. The 2023 forecast is 0.2% higher than predicted in the October 2022 World Economic Outlook.

Energy Crisis

So far Europe has managed to avoid the worst of the energy crisis as a combination of substitution to new energy sources in industry, a relatively mild winter, and an increase in stored gas helped undercut the decline in supply.

Rising Prices

Inflation in the Eurozone rose 9.2% year on year in December 2022, with energy prices remaining the biggest contributor
to accelerating prices, rising 25.7%. and Food, Alcohol and Tobacco at 13.8%.