Discuss about the Global Logistics and supply Chain Management of Pharmaceutical Companies.
The report discusses the strategies followed by pharmaceutical companies to be successful in its sector. As it is a very critical sector therefore each phase of the supply chain has to be responsibly undertaken. The example, undertaken is of Roche Company, which is a successful pharmaceutical company and the various logistic management strategies of the company is studied. The report discusses the deficiencies that are incurred during the manufacturing and distribution of the pharmaceutical products and if these deficiencies are avoided, then any unsuccessful company can take a turn towards being a successful company. The various reasons of the success of good supply chain management are discussed via the example discussed below:
Successful Pharmaceuticals companies like Roche make effective strategies to reduce counterfeit medicines in comparison to unsuccessful pharma companies.
Few of these strategies are as shown below:
Logistics
Medicines which have suffered unlawful events are imported as finished products with more safety and automated lines. The products are transferred through manufacturers who are the product owners to distributors through safe inventory system. Managers order and make invoices on behalf of manufacturers and collects payments too. Logistic operators are responsible for packing, picking and transporting material safe handedly to the warehouse. The whole process if analyzed for better results and output (Grimald, 2012).
Drug Regulatory Measures
Unsuccessful companies’ hampers drug regulatory measures like they don’t hire qualified staff and machinery, there is poor coordination in systems, weak supply chain and lack of proper monitoring. However, successful companies, have structured drug regulatory measures. There is proper implementation of systems and stakeholders are also interviewed in a structured manner. Successful pharmaceutical companies implement better communication, collect feedbacks from customers and other complaints and prepare successful supply chain and logistic strategies to protect drug counterfeit. Few regulatory measures which successful companies’ practice are fragmenting drug regulatory responsibility for better implementation of tasks. These companies manage their shortcoming in a better way and their supply chain is always audited at each and every step to avoid counterfeit medicines. Unsuccessful companies are ineffective due to corruption, weak communication system, and poor coordination, lack of finance and shortage of effective human resource personnel.
On site Quality Surveillance and Inspection Systems
Successful companies focus on efficient and cost effective ways for surveillance and inspection of large samples of drugs in the company. Pilot Project in Tanzania used a thin layer chromatography to test in their drug quality. This pilot project helped to improve the testing capacity and improve the quality of medicines; this technique was cheap and required simple training. Many batches have been tested with this technique with the aim to improve quality of the final medicines produced. Hence, successful companies like this follow a inspection system in order to check their drug quality before it is finally prepared. This includes very less costs, but provides greater benefits (Fadlallah, et al., 2016).
Similarly, there are several factors that have to be taken care of while working in a pharmaceutical sector. It is a very critical business as it involves the life and death of the patients. There are various factors and concerns that have been listed, which needs to be addressed if a company seeks to be a successful company in a pharmaceutical supply chain. There is no proper or insufficient temperature management of storehouse and also the means of transportation of products of both cold chain and room temperature products. The packaging and the means of transportation also do not get approved properly and remain in that state for the whole duration of the delivery time
The training of staff in GDP (Good distribution Practice) is very crucial to maintain the standards and composition of the ingredients of the product. In the absence of which, various unauthorized activities take place; while distribution of the product that should be dealt with stringently. Also in terms of employment, the role and the specific tasks of the staff are not defined and thereby the work does not take place in compliance with the license conditions
The distribution of the pharmaceutical products accounts to be a very essential activity of the integrated supply chain management of the pharmaceutical products. There are numerous number of agencies that are involved in the handling, storing and distributing the pharmaceutical products. The competitive advantage and success will be for those companies which take ownership of all the phases that are involved in the distribution process and the entire supply chain. Another important point for having a competitive edge is that it is important that storing of the drug products is as per required conditions of the temperature, humidity and the light which would result in better identity, strength, quality and purity of the pharmaceutical products.
Finally, for the success of the industry as a whole it is very important that the whole sellers comply with the principles of good distribution practices. The main focus should be on the quality. The quality system should be adequate. Every activity needs to be controlled even the drivers should be trained properly as it is analyzed that the drivers those are responsible for the pharmaceutical products are not trained properly. Therefore, the risk and due diligence should be properly carried out in every minor activity also of the supply chain (Trapsida & Desta, 2017).
Public Awareness: A successful pharmaceutical company will always work to increase public awareness and educate their target audience unlike an unsuccessful company which is least bothered about it. Public awareness camp was organized on counterfeit medicines by Mali and Mauritania to influence students and check the efficiency of their camp. Students could recall that there is need for reducing the dangers in medicine by seeing posters and they were convinced that there is better need to have control on drug outlets. Through this study, it was found that these campaigns will show better results and can make a company more successful when better channels will be used like that of media channels, distribution of posters in public places and proper communication of the message to the target audience. Online customers can also be targeted to increase their knowledge about counterfeit medicines (Muthoni, 2014). Companies which organize these kinds of surveys and public awareness campaigns, sets a positive image in front of their customers. This strategy will help to portray itself positively in from of its customers and finally help them increase their profits in the long run. Also, this will bring competitive advantage to a pharmaceutical company to survive in the long run.
Step by step segregation of tasks: Many other effective strategies have been followed in various countries. Some of them includes, firstly, division of responsibilities which will help to reduce duplication of work and wastage, the tasks can be implemented judiciously. Secondly, Implementation of tasks under full coordination and delegating tasks for better accountability. Thirdly, Allocating right resources to the right function (Fadlallah, et al., 2016). Fourthly, checking the authenticity of the drug, from where it came and who manufactured it, fifthly, to check and inspect the documents guidelines and points are being fulfilled. Sixthly, to make sure that human resource personnel are being available. Seventh, ensuring the financial mechanism is being checked and lastly maintain balance among all drug regulatory functions.
Rules and regulations: It is important for a successful pharmaceutical company to follow all rules and laws related to counterfeit medicines. Few companies in Nigeria do not have laws governing to sale, distribution, import or export to control the illegal system in the society. Hence, even if a country does not follow such rules, it is important that companies themselves become liable and provide quality products to the society (Ingelheim, 2017).
Sync between the processes: To ensure success in a pharmaceutical company it is imperative that the people those are involved in each stage and in each process of the supply chain work in sync with each other to make sure that supply chain integrity and compliance is addressed. It is also analyzed that the failures are due to human errors. A large number of reported defective medicines are not due to failure of technology, but due to human error (LaTorre-Snyder, 2016).
Counterfeit alertness is very essential to provide quality products, proper measures and adequate methods should be taken while delivering the products. There is an increase in the growth of counterfeiting all over the world, in the developed countries, it accounts for 1%, whereas in case of developing countries it is around 10%. The main reason is that the customers or the patients take a short cut and order medicines over the internet. There are various cases of selling counterfeiting medicines over the internet and that is why now certain steps are taken to make aware the masses convince them to use a real prescription while taking medicines, failing to do so, can result in very serious consequences like death. It is very essential to establish control, review genuine and actual risks in multifaceted supply chains. It is also imperative to understand that what is the starting point and what is the ending point of every individual responsibility. Good practices ascertain that the quality of the medicines is maintained. The temperatures of the environment also play a crucial role in this industry, thereby due care has to be taken to ascertain that under what weather conditions which medicines have to be stored and transported. A major challenge is that that when the temperatures of the environment rises, then the goods have to be very carefully transported while maintaining the required temperature. To ensure success in a pharmaceutical company it is imperative that the people those are involved in each stage and in each process of the supply chain work in sync with each other to make sure that supply chain integrity and compliance is addressed. It is also analyzed that the failures are due to human errors. A large number of reported defective medicines are not due to failure of technology, but due to human error
Roche is a leading company in the healthcare industry and is successful as it follows all national and government rules and provides original treatment to the patients. They are involved with the government to make better laws and rules for reducing counterfeit medicine. Roche’s medicines are available only through prescription and their staff is well trained to meet all requirements of the government. Contrary, illegal pharmacies which sell counterfeit medicine bring harm to customers and society. Hence, Roche recommends purchasing medicine from authorized dealers only. Roche supports the government policies and provide authorized and reliable medicines. Latest technologies have been employed for better and faster results. Therefore, the unsuccessful companies too can work on the same pattern (F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, 2017).
The need of the hour is that in order to be competitive it is important to optimize the pharmaceutical supply chain and delivering it in accordance to the safety of the patient. All the stakeholders like the suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and partners who transport and allocate products to the customers must make sure that the best product quality is delivered by the distribution network by following the GDP approach. It is very important to keep and maintain the standards as the products are transported both locally and globally. Now a day in order to be successful; education, training and constructing awareness is the need of the hour to maintain and regularly improve quality and supply chain standards. Working exclusive of supply chain integrity and authenticity will fail to deliver safety to the patient (Dylst & Vulto, 2013).
A pharmaceutical company impacts numerous lives around the globe by researching on various medicines and lifesaving products. Hence, it is essential for them to operate sustainability in the form of quality and safe products. They also need to simultaneously work on improved and creative therapies to meet medical emergencies. A pharmaceutical company needs to act responsibly in their code of conduct and thinking to provide significant value to the customers (Singal, 2017).
Roche company is committed to sustainability. Roche works on bringing efficiency and continuous improvement in their systems and tasks of reducing counterfeit medicines. The resources and raw material are being carefully analyzed and it is also being taken care that resources are environmentally friendly with minimum wastage. Roche continues to work for minimum wastage and checking the raw material at each step to avoid counterfeit medicines. This will provide safe medicines to the people and will bring trust among people in society.
The evaluation of environment and safe medicines is being done by collecting, aggregating the data from Roche website and their client’s feedback. A key indicator of their performance includes: use of sustainable energy, maintaining eco-balance, safe health of their clients, training their employees, audit research and benchmarking performances for better results
Always checking the authenticity of the drug, from where it came and who manufactured it.
Then to check and inspect the documents, guidelines and points are being fulfilled.
To make sure that human resource personnel are being available.
Ensuring the financial mechanism are being checked and lastly maintain balance among all drug regulatory functions.
In order to be competitive it is important to optimize the pharmaceutical supply chain and delivering it in accordance to the safety of the patient.
It is very important to keep and maintain the standards as the products are transported both locally and globally.
In order to be successful; education, training and constructing awareness is the need of the hour to maintain and regularly improve quality and supply chain standards.
The competitive advantage and success will be for those companies which take ownership of all the phases that are involved in the distribution process and the entire supply chain
Conclusion
The reason why some companies become unsuccessful in the pharmaceutical sector are that these companies do not pay enough heed to drug regulatory measures as these companies do not hire qualified staff and machinery; there is poor coordination in systems, weak supply chain and lack of proper monitoring. Whereas, the successful companies, follow structured drug regulatory measures and also hire trained employees. There is proper implementation of systems. Successful pharmaceutical companies implement better communication, collect feedbacks from customers and other complaints and prepare successful supply chain and logistic strategies to protect drug counterfeit. These companies manage their shortcoming in a better way and their supply chain is always audited at each and every step to avoid counterfeit medicines. Unsuccessful companies are also ineffective due to corrupt; there is a weak communication system, and poor coordination between different phases of the supply chain, lack of finance and shortage of effective human resource personnel. The competitive advantage and success will be for those companies which take ownership of all the phases that are involved in the distribution process and the entire supply chain. Online customers can also be targeted to increase their knowledge about counterfeit medicines. This strategy will help to portray itself positively in from of its customers and finally help them increase their profits in the long run. Also, this will bring competitive advantage to a pharmaceutical company to survive in the long run
References
Dylst, P. & Vulto, A., 2013. Generic medicines: solutions for a sustainable drug market?. PMC journal, 11(5), pp. 437-43.
Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, 2017. Fighting counterfeit products. [Online]
Fadlallah, R., Annan, F. & Azzam, H., 2016. Strategies and Systems-Level Interventions to Combat or Prevent Drug Counterfeiting: A Systematic Review of Evidence Beyond Effectiveness. PMC journal, 30(5), p. 263–276.
Fadlallah, R., El-Jardali , F., Annan, F. & Azzam, H., 2016. Strategies and Systems-Level Interventions to Combat or Prevent Drug Counterfeiting: A Systematic Review of Evidence Beyond Effectiveness. Pharmaceutical Medicine journal, October, 30(5), p. 263–276.
Grimald, P., 2012. Roche Argentina: Fighting counterfeit medicines using a traceability system based on GS1 Standards: Healthcare Reference Book, Available at: https://www.gs1.org.ar/documentos/casos%20de%20exito/Caso_Roche.pdf
Ingelheim, B., 2017. Dangers of counterfeit medicines, Available at: https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.com/sustainability/anti-counterfeiting/dangers-counterfeit-medicines
LaTorre-Snyder, M., 2016. Keeping Counterfeit Medicines Out of the Supply Chain, Available at: https://www.pharmpro.com/article/2016/01/keeping-counterfeit-medicines-out-supply-chain
Muthoni, J., 2014. Anti-Counterfeiting Strategies Adopted By Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Firms In Kenya And Organizational Performance, Available at: https://erepository.uonbi.ac.ke/bitstream/handle/11295/76838/Marete_Anti-counterfeiting%20Strategies%20Adopted%20by%20Pharmaceutical%20Manufacturing%20Firms%20in%20Kenya%20and%20Organizational%20Performance.pdf?sequence=3
Singal, R., 2017. Understanding the aims of sustainability and transformation plans (STPs) and what they mean for pharmacy, Available at: https://www.pharmaceutical-journal.com/learning/learning-article/understanding-the-aims-of-sustainability-and-transformation-plans-stps-and-what-they-mean-for-pharmacy/20202233.article
Trapsida, J. & Desta, A., 2017. Preventing and controlling substandard and counterfeit medical products in the WHO African region, Available at: https://www.aho.afro.who.int/en/ahm/issue/15/reports/preventing-and-controlling-substandard-and-counterfeit-medical-products-who
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