A mother in Saskatoon is doing everything she can to ensure her daughter Jennica has the special ketogenic formula she needs.
Michelle Linklater’s 22-year-old daughter has autism and epilepsy.
According to Linklater, she must be fed through a tube and liquid KetoCal is the most effective product for her daughter to avoid seizures.
Linklater says right now she’s trying to navigate through a shortage from the only distribution company in North America – Nutricia North America.
“I just don’t want to go back to (my daughter) having all those seizures,” Linklater told 650 CKOM. “Life just was not good for her.”
Linklater calls the experience frustrating and wants Nutricia to give her clear answers and a concrete timeline for when it will be back to normal.
“If this is the only company we can purchase from we have to do what we can to be able to trust that they know what they’re doing,” Linklater said.
In a statement from Nutricia sent to 650 CKOM on Monday the company said the issue stems from a supply shortage in Europe, where the product is sourced.
“We are doing everything possible to resolve this situation quickly,” the statement reads. “We expect that product availability should be back to normal in a matter of weeks.”
The company said, in the interim, it still has a powder form of KetoCal.
Linklater told CKOM that she was not able to order the powdered KetoCal when she called the company on Monday morning.
According to Linklater, Jennica can have the powdered format if necessary but switching from the liquid causes stress which triggers seizures.