This afternoon, no pharmacy in the center of downtown Funchal had disinfectant gel, ethyl alcohol or protective masks. The demand has been so expressive everywhere that there is no forecast for replenishing the stock of these products.
At the Morna pharmacy, for example, we were told that there is no provision for both the arrival of disinfectant gel and masks. What comes next week will be disinfectant wipes, but other than that, there is no idea when the pharmacy will have gel again to sell. The same will happen with masks. It is not known when more units will arrive.
The same is happening with the sale of ethyl alcohol. This, too, has been sold out “for many days” and is not just in pharmacies. In supermarkets, since the Covid-19 cases in Portugal were announced, the product has evaporated from the shelves.
Another product that may still be lacking in pharmacies is paracetamol such is the volume of packaging that has been sold in recent days.
“You cannot imagine the quantities of paracetamol that we have been selling in recent days. People are desperate and claim that they must have fever pills at home. As they know that one of the symptoms of the coronavirus is high fever, they are afraid of being caught by surprise ”, confided to JM a pharmacist who preferred not to be identified.
The same professional also said that since the infection arrived in Portugal, she has noticed a growing concern on the part of people and that there is no day when she does not speak “dozens of times” about preventive measures. “The elderly, above all, have a lot of doubts and look to pharmacies for advice. They ask how they can protect themselves, if there is a cure for the disease and if there are already cases in Madeira ”, he stressed.
Salomé Andrade, retired, went to the pharmacy Confiança to look for disinfectant gel.
On the way out, in a loud voice, she shouted “I came again cheated”.
“I already ran all the pharmacies and I didn’t find any gel to disinfect for my hands in any of them. This is a pain in the neck, ”she said, adding that she has been“ looking for ”this product for more than a week.” I haven’t found it in Caniço, “she said, showing disappointment.
Questioned about the main fears she has about Covid-19 infection, she said that what she fears most about the infection is the fact that she is diabetic.
“I heard that diabetics are a risk group and that’s why I have to be careful,” said the sexagenarian.