Medications

[TheWind]

I take medications and some may consider them western medicines. Anyways, in the past I've had difficulty finding said medication in China (at the time I was in Taizhou). Usually I'll just bring it from home, but its a huge hassle & super heavy.

Does anybody know of any large Chinese (pharmacuetical) companies that I could contact & maybe find these medications?

Im willing to travel (some) buy preferably located in a larger cities in southern China. such as Shanghai, Suzhou,Hangzhou, Ningbo, etc...

thanks

[abcdefg]

Take them from home. By far the best way.

 

Over the years I've figured out which of my every-day, "maintenance" medications can be purchased here and how to do that. So I don't carry those in my suitcase when I come.

 

The difficulty of your task will depend on what medications you are trying to find and where in China you live.

[TheWind]

I might agree with you if this was some seasonal allergy medication, but it's not.

I have 3 prescriptions and a 1-year supply takes up 1/3 of my large suitcase storage. At which case it then becomes a problem.

And in case you may have been thinking "Why not have the American pharmaceutical company ship them to China?"

To put it simply - I tried & they won't.

[Flickserve]

You have to look for the distributor for each medicine. Presumably you are taking medication that are still patented.

[abcdefg]

I have 3 prescriptions and a 1-year supply takes up 1/3 of my large suitcase storage. At which case it then becomes a problem.

 

It's worth buying a second suitcase and paying an overweight fee if you must.

 

What medicines are you trying to find in China and where are you looking? I've figured out how to buy Chinese brands here in Kunming for my blood pressure pills and one of my asthma meds. But it wasn't easy.

[TheWind]

Well one of them I actually don't have a problem finding (Depakote)

the others are Keppra, AKA Levetiracetam. The last one is Zonisimide.

Brand name or generic versions are ok.

The problem is I don't know where to look.

Especially in English.

[陳德聰]

http://m.jinxiang.com/product/15683.html

Keppra is supposedly sold by most chain pharmacies. I don't have first hand knowledge but it seems to be available under the same brand: 开浦兰 (kai pu lan)

http://m.baiji.com.cn/goods-8754.html

Zonisimide tablets (唑尼沙胺片) appear to be available too, but I read somewhere that you can't buy it online, only from a pharmacy.

Whereabouts are you going to be? If there are large pharmacies where you are at it seems likely you will be able to procure the meds you need.

[coolnicholas]

All your medicines are sold in China, you should search them with Baidu.

[TheWind]

very helpful, thanks you guys

[abcdefg]

I don't know about those two meds personally, but as to method of finding ones I've needed here, what I do is search a photo on line of the Chinese version of the medication (start with Baidu) and then transfer the photo to my phone or even print it out.

 

For example, here's the Baidu page for Keppra: http://baike.baidu.com/link?url=_SuLs9JIxaLCfAHtnOaDrZ2H-X9gDvvbMgeS1GwLX5-pi_HuHh3qWmGf8vk7-YBrlepxbk_tYqfQ2DRvZ90jWa

 

And here's a photo of the box (plus some pricing information): http://www.jianke.com/product/68231.html

 

 

Then I do two kinds of on-the-ground searching.

 

First, I try large pharmacies. The best-stocked large pharmacies as a rule are ones located near major hospitals. If they have it and will sell it to you retail, then you're done. Goes without saying that you need to know the dose you want and the form. (Some meds come as delayed-release tablets or capsules as well as shorter-acting forms.)

 

Sometimes they carry a medication, but require a prescription in order to dispense it to you. Then you need to see a doctor, either in a clinic or in the hospital. That's usually not difficult or expensive.

 

Some medicines are only sold by hospital pharmacies and not by retail pharmacies. These are often meds which are more difficult to get or more often used only by specialists. What I do is first approach the hospital pharmacy, which typically has two sections (Western 西药 and Chinese 中药).

 

If they have the medicine I'm looking for, then I go back and take a number to see one of the general doctors. Some hospitals have screening doctors (mainly doing triage) who work very fast. They will be able to write the prescription you need, so long as they don't think it's dangerous or inappropriate for your condition.

 

In some hospitals, you will be directed instead to someone who specializes in your situation; pulmonary for me; neurology for you. By the time I've gone through all this, I try to obtain a 3-month supply for the sake of convenience.

 

Getting your meds "the hospital way" takes more time than getting them the "retail pharmacy way." There are also differences in how relaxed or strict the process is from city to city. In Kunming, for example, I can still buy antibiotics over the counter without a prescription while I've read that in Beijing or Shanghai it is either very difficult or impossible.

 

I have no experience with buying medication on-line in China. And my efforts to have things shipped in from the US have not ended well. They either cannot make it through customs or they just disappear. (I realize that some others here have had better luck in that regard.)