CANTON, Connecticut (WTNH) — Maggie Cole walked into CVS thinking it would be an easy trip. Canton’s mother needed children’s Tylenol and other medications for her 13-month-old daughter, Caroline, who was diagnosed with a ruptured eardrum and a painful ear infection.
But she didn’t find the medicine there. So she went to her next CVS, then the next store, then the next store.
“It breaks you,” she said. “When you see your little one hurt, you move mountains. You move heaven and earth to see that they get better.”
For Cole, who is expecting her second child, it was a reminder of this year’s formula shortage.
Kirsten Bechtel, Ph.D., a pediatric emergency medicine associate at Yale University, said this season was “unprecedented” when it comes to childhood illness. The surge of influenza, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has been termed the ‘triple disease’.
She suggests that if parents don’t have what they need in stock at the pharmacy, they should instead look for common pain and fever-lowering medications.
“You don’t necessarily have to get the branded version of Tylenol, Motrin, or Advil,” says Bechtel. “It also comes in common forms, such as acetaminophen in Tylenol and ibuprofen in Motrin and Advil.”
In a written statement to News 8, CVS said: We are committed to meeting the needs of our customers and work with our suppliers to ensure continued access to these items. “
Cole turned to family and friends across the state to find drugs for Caroline. Her father-in-law finally found it—at Walmart an hour away.
