All said they were motivated by concern for elderly family members, especially those with underlying diseases who may not have had all their vaccine shots and could have difficulty accessing timely hospital treatment.

But many also expressed their doubts about whether their packages would reach their loved ones in time.

Catherina Huang, a Chinese administrator living in New Zealand, said she was told it could take nearly a month for her parcel to be delivered to her mother in Dongguan, in the southern province of Guangdong.

Huang, 28, outlined the dire situation back home in a social media post. “Panadol and other regular cold medicines are all out of stock and everyone is saying that they cannot get hold of any, even if they try to snap up online every day,” she wrote.

“My mom doesn’t even know how to use the internet, not to mention that she has to outrun others.”

Huang said she has also heard of packages containing medicines failing to arrive, and feared the parcel for her mother could be stolen or destroyed.

Qin Zhen, who works at an Australian immigration agency in Melbourne, said one of her packages – destined for her mother-in-law in Beijing – had gone missing.

“I sent three packages. Two of them were Nu-Lax laxative block and arrived two months ago. The other contains Panadol and vitamin C, and that’s the one that went missing,” she said. “The post office said they were looking into it and it could take up to two months.”

Chinese turn to black market for generic Indian Covid-19 drugs

Qin said she bought and shipped the items again, only to learn the latest package has been stuck in Chinese customs for more than two weeks – a process that previously took just three to five days.

Several provinces – including Jiangsu in the east, northern Hebei, and Sichuan in the southwest – have tried to make sure the logistics are in place to keep up with the deliveries of these essential supplies, but the challenge is hard to meet.

Beijing resident Guo Tao said he had tried to send a packet of Ibuprofen to his parents-in-law in Taixing in Jiangsu province, but it got stuck in the capital’s logistics centre for a week. He returned to the post office to find out what had happened and was told to wait another five days.

“The staff told me that everybody had been infected and they were short of manpower for normal operations. They said I could wait for five more days and things would improve. I hope my in-laws stay negative before the drugs arrive,” Guo said.

01:27

Dental clinic gives away fever tablets amid medicine shortage in China

Dental clinic gives away fever tablets amid medicine shortage in China

In addition to medicines, many Chinese living outside the mainland are also sending medicinal drinks back home.

Liu Zhenqi, a student at the University of Hong Kong, said she sent her grandfather in Zhuzhou, in the southern island province of Hunan, several bottles of Ricqlès, a mint spirit used to treat flu and inflammation.

Liu turned to the drink when her family urged her not to buy regular cold medicines because they were “very difficult to get”. But, because the product contains alcohol she was unable to send her packages through the major delivery services.

Liu said she had to turn to the private sector, whose delivery charges were “much more expensive”.

11:42

China 2022 Year in Review

China 2022 Year in Review

In Melbourne, Qin said she witnessed what appeared to be people stockpiling cold medicines for resale in mainland China at much higher prices – a practice which could lead to overseas shortages.

“Many were buying cold medicine in bulk boxes when I visited the drug store. The amount was more than enough for the diseases they could possibly have for a lifetime,” Qin said.

“They were obviously doing it to make a quick fortune, leaving us with medical shortages abroad.”