A global medication shortage affects both developing and developed countries, with 323 drugs in shortage as of early 2024.

This issue, tracked since 2001, particularly affects sterile injectable generic drugs.

More than half of treatment shortages last over two years, affecting at least half a million patients.

Manufacturing and quality problems are the primary causes of most drug shortages.

Lack of transparency in the pharmaceutical industry hinders responses to drug shortages.

Hospitals and pharmacies use coping mechanisms like single processing windows, dedicated personnel, and alternative drugs to address medication shortages.

Incident command centers manage medication shortages and monitor essential medical supplies.

These centers help mitigate medication shortages, including iodinated contrast media used in radiologic exams.

Data analytics and predictive modeling are essential for building resilient pharmaceutical supply chains.

Pharmaceutical companies use data analytics, AI, and machine learning to improve supply chain resilience and address medication shortages.

Integrating data analytics with inventory management and incident command systems provides crucial real-time data for supply chain resilience.

Government agencies support hospitals and pharmacies by implementing policies like importing essential medicines and regulating production, delivery, and prices.

Policies to address medication shortages include exempting pharmaceutical imports from documentation, lifting import restrictions, and establishing a drug shortage treatment center.

The global medication shortage requires a comprehensive approach involving governments, healthcare systems, and manufacturers.

A global medication shortage affects both developing and developed countries, with 323 drugs in shortage as of early 2024.

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Content: General Supervision
Elham Aboul Fath
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An Unexpected Catastrophe in the World ’ s Largest Country: The Complete Story of U.S. Drug Shortages
The deficit is at a record level.
According to data from the American Society of Health System Pharmacists and the University of Utah Drug Information Service, organizations began tracking drug shortages for the first time in 2001. Steady since 2021 – now reaching a record high of 323 drugs in the first three months of 2024.
Paul Abramowitz, CEO of the American Society of Health System Pharmacists, wrote in a blog post on Thursday: “It ’ s been a long time to end drug shortages, ” and wrote:“ All drug classes are vulnerable to shortages, some of the most worrisome shortages include sterile injectable generic drugs, including cancer chemotherapy drugs and emergency drugs stored in hospital vans and procedural areas. It is dangerous for doctors and patients. ”
In addition to the 32 chemotherapy drugs that are deficient, the five categories of drugs with the greatest deficiency include central nervous system stimulants, antimicrobials, hormonal agents, and intravenous fluids. [1] The Drug Deficiency Database maintained by the American Society of Health System Pharmacists and the University of Utah is based on voluntary reports from practitioners, patients, and others that have been confirmed by manufacturers. The U.S. drug is in short supply, because it captures broader effects on service providers and patients.
The crisis has lasted a year and a half.
More than half of the treatment shortages have lasted for more than two years, according to an analysis by health consultancy IQVIA, and the average shortage affects at least half a million patients, many of them elderly, according to the US Office of Health and Human Services under the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, which shared its analysis with Congress in May.
Growing demand can play a role in drug shortages, as with the recent shortage of weight-loss drugs, but often manufacturing and quality problems, such as supply chain gaps and downtime, are the root cause. And varied.
But the American Society of Health System Pharmacists has “serious concerns ” about parts of this proposal, especially financial sanctions imposed on hospitals that lack the resources to comply with the recommendations, Abramowitz wrote:“ We all know that managing shortages is not enough and is not a sustainable solution to the worsening crisis, and there is still a lot of work to be done at the federal level to fix the root causes of drug shortages. ”
Why Shortage Occurs
Shortages can be caused by high demand, as with the recent shortage of weight-loss drugs, but this is not usually the main problem.
The FDA also blames manufacturing and quality problems, supply chain gaps, and downtime, and Dr. Emily Tucker, a drug shortage expert and an assistant professor of industrial engineering at Clemson University, says that when there is an indication of shortages, large health systems often also proactively place large orders, adding to the system ’ s stress.
“I don ’ t blame anyone.
“When I talk to all the stakeholders – whether it ’ s wholesalers, manufacturers, or the government – everyone wants this problem to end, ” she said.
Lack of transparency
Dr. Julie Grallo, chief medical officer and executive vice president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, told the House Committee earlier that the shortage puts providers in a terrible position: “The drug shortage crisis is forcing providers to make impossible choices, and it is also hindering the development of new drugs. Health drugs are purchased only on a price basis, and manufacturers do not have to disclose the source of their acquisition of the ingredients.
The shortage of this generic chemical drug came due to the closure of one factory in India that manufactures the active ingredient after a surprise FDA inspection found “significant quality issues, ” says Jarallo:“ We didn ’ t know, and there was no transparency regarding the company ’ s supply of the majority of active pharmaceutical ingredients to all manufacturers across the board.
Knowing this in advance, we could have responded much faster, ” Dr. Steven Schundlemeyer, director of the PRIME Institute of the University of Minnesota School of Pharmacy, which focuses on economic and management issues, told the committee that as with defense contractors in the United States, New Zealand requires manufacturers to disclose their suppliers, and that information is required.
Easily accessible in the database.
Related Topics

This issue, tracked since 2001, particularly affects sterile injectable generic drugs.

More than half of treatment shortages last over two years, affecting at least half a million patients.

Manufacturing and quality problems are the primary causes of most drug shortages.

Lack of transparency in the pharmaceutical industry hinders responses to drug shortages.

Hospitals and pharmacies use coping mechanisms like single processing windows, dedicated personnel, and alternative drugs to address medication shortages.

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Content: The lack of medicine continues to burn!
The Ministry of Health and Welfare has proposed a short, medium and long-term strategy to deal with the current 5 coping mechanisms.
Journalist Yen Zhenzhen / Taipei Report
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the shortage of drugs is not a single factor, but includes supply problems, manufacturing problems, clinical demand factors, uneven distribution of drugs, drug use habits and drug prices. In addition to dealing with the relatively high clinical demand items, it is properly allocated to all levels of medical institutions and pharmacies to fully meet the needs of clinical end-use drugs.
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In the face of the shortage of drugs, Wang said, the existing health insurance uses five major coping mechanisms, including 1, a single processing window, a dedicated person to help deal with the problem of drug purchase, and contact the Food and Drug Administration to put relevant information on the website of the NHI. (4) Drug price adjustment mechanism that does not meet the cost can be re-checked according to the way of raising the price of special drugs; (5) Alternative drugs can still declare the cost, if they are not irreplaceable, they can be replaced at the same price or lower than the original prescription drug price.
In addition, Wang pointed out that in the face of the international epidemic, the Russian-Ukrainian war, and labor shortage, drug shortage is a problem facing all countries. In order to strengthen the stable supply mechanism of drugs in China, the Ministry of Health and Welfare continues to actively respond to the short-term strategy to solve the problem of drug shortage. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the pharmaceutical industry have made every effort to actively arrange production lines, strive for early import, increase production / import quantity, and properly distribute to all levels of medical institutions and pharmacies to fully meet the demand for clinical end use drugs.
In addition, to properly handle the issue of drug price adjustment, the Central Health Insurance Administration of the Ministry of Health and Welfare intends to implement the "Universal Health Insurance Cost Distribution Target System (DET)" in April this year, which will adjust the number of drug prices and adjust the quota in a suitable manner, taking into account factors such as the epidemic, the Russian-Ukrainian war and inflation.
In terms of medium-term strategy, Wang said that he will establish a permanent drug shortage treatment center and optimize drug supply information transmission.
In order to speed up the handling of drug shortage incidents, we will adopt dedicated personnel and cross-departmental cooperation to develop drug shortage prevention policies to prevent drug shortage in advance, strengthen cross-departmental data integration and proactive monitoring to detect drug shortage incidents at an early stage, and intervene early through cross-departmental cooperation to stabilize drug supply.
At the same time, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continues to disseminate drug supply and alternative drug information through various channels. In addition to posting on the “Drug Supply Information Platform ”, the FDA will notify medical institutions and pharmacies through VPN, and weekly letters to relevant medical associations and public associations to inform members. Management system.
In the long-term strategy section, it includes reviewing the current health insurance drug pricing policy and encouraging the production of domestically manufactured generic drugs.
Wang Bi-sheng pointed out that in the review of the current health insurance drug price policy, including the development of the price protection of indicative drugs, drug price review for the lack of drugs; start the review of drug expenditure target (DET), plan the establishment of a risk control mechanism, plan the national unified procurement trial plan; comprehensively review the health insurance drug price policy, give an appropriate price protection mechanism for necessary drugs, and also target the patent period. To encourage the production of domestic manufacturers to ensure that when there is a shortage of original pharmaceutical products, there are domestic famous drugs to respond.
Wang also stressed that the Food and Drug Administration has set up a "Drug Supply Information Platform" (https: / / dsms.fda.gov.tw /), reporting hotline (02) 27878249. If medical institutions and pharmacies have any shortage of drugs, they can go to the platform for enquiry or notification, and the department will deal with it immediately.
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Incident command centers manage medication shortages and monitor essential medical supplies.

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Content: Newswise — OAK BROOK, Ill. (May 19, 2022) – Recent disruptions in a pharmaceutical supply chain have impacted the global availability of GE Healthcare Omnipaque™ iohexol iodinated contrast media (ICM) for radiologic examinations. A new Special Report published in the journal Radiology provides consensus recommendations for dealing with the shortage of ICM in the near term and discusses long-term issues and potential solutions to supply chain problems.

“We are facing issues similar to those we faced in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, caused by a limited supply of an important pharmaceutical, critical to our ability to care for our patients,” said Thomas M. Grist, M.D., chair of the Department of Radiology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison and lead author of the Radiology Special Report. “One important difference, however, is that our hospitals and health systems are more adept at establishing incident command centers to implement rapid responses to the challenges we face and communicating those changes to our patients and referring physicians.”

Iohexol is a common agent used in a multitude of CT and X-ray exams. The iohexol shortage has created a national challenge to radiology’s collective ability to provide health care to patients needing these exams and will have short- and potentially long-term impact on quality medical care.

Although four companies supply ICM to the U.S., other manufacturers are unable to rapidly scale up ICM production to meet the demand created by the reduction in iohexol.

The shortage traces its origins to the recent COVID-19-related shutdown of a manufacturing facility in Shanghai, China. In an April 19 letter to consumers, GE Healthcare announced it would be limiting orders of iohexol. The facility has since reopened with production output currently at 50% and expected to increase. GE Healthcare has also expanded production capacity at its manufacturing site in Cork, Ireland.

“It is too easy for us to take for granted the readily available supply of something that is so important to our patients and our radiologic practices until it’s gone,” Dr. Grist said. “We need to commit to changing the supply chain so that a single event in a faraway country does not put us in this predicament again. We owe it to our patients who trust us with their lives and well-being every day of the year.”

The shortage has already had an effect on patient care. Across the U.S., hospitals dependent on iohexol are postponing treatment-monitoring imaging for cancer patients, as they attempt to preserve the contrast material for the most urgent cases.

The Special Report offers strategies for mitigating the impact of the shortage. Short-term strategies include establishing an incident command center to direct and monitor ICM usage, delaying elective contrast-enhanced CT exams, converting exams to non-contrast when possible, reducing contrast dose, and substituting other types of exams, such as MRI, ultrasound or non-contrast PET-CT.

Strategies for the coming months include contrast repackaging, multi-use, and multi-access tactics, negotiation with payers on billing and reimbursement, and consistent communication with ordering providers to ensure compliance.

Long-term strategies include advocating for legislation to facilitate contrast manufacturing plants in the U.S., improving institutional inventory of contrast supplies, and supporting the vendors to expand manufacturing.

“RSNA and its journals are committed to providing critical guidance to help our members navigate challenging times,” said RSNA President, Bruce G. Haffty, M.D. “This Radiology Special Report provides helpful strategies for managing the iodinated contrast shortage and offers practical recommendations for mitigating the impact of future shortages of this type on the radiology community and our patients.”

The authors hope that the radiology and hospital communities will take this lesson as a wake-up call to adapt the radiology supply chain to prevent similar emergencies in the future.

“We need to endeavor to ensure that companies with significant market share have diverse production locations and capacity,” Dr. Grist said. “We should also look at the ancillary components for ICM administration and make certain we have adequate supplies in stock. Any and all supplies we use may be the next subject of shortages over the next few months or years.”

See also: Iodinated Contrast Shortage Challenges Radiologists.

###

Short-, Mid-, and Long-Term Strategies to Manage the Shortage of Iohexol.” Collaborating with Dr. Grist were Cheri L. Canon, M.D., Elliot K. Fishman, M.D., Maureen P. Kohi, M.D., and Mahmud Mossa-Basha, M.D.

Radiology is edited by David A. Bluemke, M.D., Ph.D., University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin, and owned and published by the Radiological Society of North America, Inc. (RSNA) (https://pubs.rsna.org/journal/radiology)

RSNA is an association of radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists and related scientists promoting excellence in patient care and health care delivery through education, research and technologic innovation. The Society is based in Oak Brook, Illinois. (RSNA.org)

For patient-friendly information on contrast materials, visit RadiologyInfo.org.

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These centers help mitigate medication shortages, including iodinated contrast media used in radiologic exams.

Data analytics and predictive modeling are essential for building resilient pharmaceutical supply chains.

Title:

Content: Resilience, sustainable supply chains are crucial to pharma sector

Sustainability and innovation are the main forces behind the pharmaceutical industry's transformation from suppliers to innovators. The panellists participating in The ETPharma’s Future-Ready Pharma Supply Chain Summit discussion on ‘Trilogue: Navigating Sustainability, Risk, and Resilience in Pharma Supply Chains’ emphasised the importance of sustainability, as it is both a competitive advantage and a moral requirement. Pharmaceutical firms can reduce risks, improve their brand, and attract more environmentally concerned customers by investing in sustainable practices and technologies.

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  • Updated On Mar 15, 2024 at 05:33 PM IST
By Prabhat Prakash & Prarthana Sharma

Mumbai: Resilient supply chains are crucial for the pharmaceutical business in an era of global uncertainties like pandemics, geopolitical tensions, and environmental challenges. With the increasing global dependence on pharmaceuticals, it is critical to guarantee a consistent and unbroken supply of vital medications.

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The ETPharma’s Future-Ready Pharma Supply Chain Summit, themed ‘Resilience, Integrity, and Sustainability’ featured an insightful panel discussion on ‘Trilogue: Navigating Sustainability, Risk, and Resilience in Pharma Supply Chains’. The panellists for the session included Sanjay Kumar, Chief Strategy & Sustainability Officer, Granules India Limited; Chirag Mehta, Chief Financial Officer, Bharat Serums and Vaccines Limited; and Sugeet Chopra, SVP, Global SCM, Strides Pharma Science Limited. The discussion was moderated by Shantanu Bhadkamkar, Chairman, Maharashtra State Development Council, ASSOCHAM.

continued below
Sustainability and innovation are the main forces behind the pharmaceutical industry's transformation from suppliers to innovators. The importance of sustainability was emphasised by the panellists as both a competitive advantage and a moral requirement. Pharmaceutical firms can reduce risks, improve their brand, and attract more environmentally concerned customers by investing in sustainable practices and technologies.

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Starting with the discussion, Bhadkamkar emphasised that developing an organisational culture of collaboration across various departments and functions, putting employee growth and well-being first, and proactively identifying and mitigating risks before they worsen are all important aspects of investing in resilience. Organisations can guarantee that their staff is competent and driven, able to drive innovation and adjust to changing circumstances. When different viewpoints are brought together through cross-functional collaboration, problem-solving and decision-making become more efficient.

He also said that improving resilience in the pharmaceutical sector requires investing in sustainable practices and implementing a sustainable approach to business operations. Sustainable practices cover a wide range of topics, such as ethical raw material procurement, ecologically friendly production techniques, and conscientious waste management. Pharmaceutical firms can lessen regulatory risks, improve stakeholder relations, and lessen their environmental impact by putting sustainability first.

The panellists emphasised the significance of resilience in navigating the ever-changing global markets, which is characterised as the capacity to handle changes without negative consequences. As they emphasised the necessity to anticipate and prepare for unforeseen events, such as supply chain interruptions or geopolitical concerns, while maintaining a careful balance between efficiency and reactivity.

As the discussion continued, it emphasised organisational, technological, and cultural obstacles as impediments to developing resilient supply chains. A narrow focus on immediate profitability and a lack of attention to resilience in corporate goals were examples of cultural impediments. The requirement for improved data analytics and technology adoption to effectively forecast and manage hazards was the main source of technological hurdles. Resilience was also shown to be hindered by organisational constraints, such as transactional ties with suppliers and compartmentalised operations.

To tackle these obstacles, the strategy needs to underline the necessity of top-down leadership commitment to fund, prioritise, and cultivate a collaborative and innovative culture. The adoption of technology was emphasised as being essential for gathering insights and controlling risks, especially in data analytics and predictive modelling. Furthermore, it incorporates flexibility and redundancy.

Mehta added that the key to strengthening an organisation's ability to manage risks, including geopolitical uncertainties, is to keep operations sustainable. He highlighted how crucial it is to take preventative action to deal with anticipated problems like geopolitical tensions, economic volatility, or regulatory changes, how dynamic business settings are, and how businesses must constantly innovate and change to be resilient and sustainable in the face of changing conditions.

He further added that investing in reliable IT infrastructure and data security measures is one of the many components that go into building resilience. An organisation can strengthen its technical infrastructure to stave off interruptions and cyber risks by allowing employees to invest in IT systems. To protect sensitive data and vital activities, this entails putting advanced monitoring systems, data encryption, frequent backups, and cybersecurity measures into place.

Chopra highlighted a difficulty faced by firms in supply chain management where the focus is often constrained to short-term goals and immediate concerns, leaving out the need for long-term resilience. He highlighted that resilience entails not just withstanding disruptions but also efficiently recovering from them. The ability of a system to tolerate disruptive influences without failing is referred to as resistance. In the meantime, recovery refers to the system's ability to recover from these disturbances, return to normal operation, and adjust to new conditions. These elements work together to provide resilience, which enables systems to overcome obstacles, withstand shocks, and eventually prosper in the face of difficulty.

Resilience and sustainability are becoming crucial requirements for pharmaceutical supply chain management. The COVID-19 epidemic prompted industry participants to reassess their plans by serving as a sharp warning of the vulnerabilities present in global supply chains. It is critical to create robust supply chains that can handle disruptions without suffering negative effects. Resilience in supply chains is comparable to a sponge that absorbs force without breaking; it requires strong risk management procedures, technological investment, and capacity planning.

A new era of decision-making in the pharmaceutical sector is being ushered in by innovation, notably in the use of new technologies. Businesses are using cutting-edge technology, such as machine learning and data analytics, to improve operational effectiveness and foresee potential difficulties. This focus on innovation goes beyond technology to include sustainability programmes meant to lessen their negative effects on the environment and promote accountability in business.

Environmental, social, and governance, or ESG, aspects are becoming more and more important in the pharmaceutical sector, having an impact on corporate strategies and investment decisions. A growing number of investors are giving companies with robust ESG policies a top priority, seeing the long-term benefits of sustainability programmes. Promoting an innovative culture and advancing sustainability goals inside firms depend on effective communication.

Global trends and changing market demands are causing major changes in the pharmaceutical business in Indonesia and India. Opportunities abound for firms eager to embrace innovation, sustainability, and resilience in this changing world.

The panel concluded on the note that resilience and sustainable supply chains are crucial as the pharmaceutical sector continues to negotiate in a challenging and quickly changing environment. By adopting sustainability, innovation, and resilience as guiding concepts, businesses can reduce risks, grab expansion possibilities, and set themselves apart from competitors. To protect public health and guarantee a sustainable future for all stakeholders, the industry experts' insights highlight the necessity of proactive policies, cooperative collaborations, and continuous investment in creating resilient and sustainable supply chains.
  • Published On Mar 15, 2024 at 05:33 PM IST

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Pharmaceutical companies use data analytics, AI, and machine learning to improve supply chain resilience and address medication shortages.

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Analytics And Insight: Digging Into Data

Kathleen Brunner is the founder, current CEO and President of Acumen Analytics.

While there is cautious optimism, the pandemic continues to impose pressure points and challenges requiring us to change the way we do things. This period in time calls for us to significantly broaden our thinking.

The need for collaboration in organizations has never been more apparent, and the challenges of collaboration never greater. Eliminating departmental working silos is only the beginning. The entire ecosystem needs to be strung together in a secure yet frictionless communication framework, allowing a connected data flow and integrated view of data to achieve the ultimate strategic plan, speed to market and overall success. This need was greatly amplified throughout the pandemic and specifically across life sciences industries. One spotlighted area is pharmaceutical supply chain practices, business continuity and drug/supply shortage prevention.

But many leaders are wondering: How can my organization be future-ready?

The biotech and pharma spaces are often lagging in adopting new technology for a variety of reasons, often due to regulatory and validation requirements. While not specifically focused on life sciences, a recent McKinsey study indicates one silver lining of the Covid-19 crisis is that companies appear to be digitizing many activities 20-25 times faster than previously observed.

Data

Data is being generated rapidly all around us. But, proper use, interpretation and understanding of this data is required for efficiency and successful outcomes. Industry 4.0 deepens the need for companies to ask the right questions regarding their data. In the biopharma world, technical changes are a crucial component of prosperity. Edge computing and smart manufacturing allow for more equipment to be digitally enhanced and cloud-enabled. Temperature monitoring of a shipment from factory to pharmacy is a great example of this.

Additional investments in technology are key to the education and implementation of systems capable of handling high data volumes through experiments that produce large data sets (i.e., metabolomics). After all, data can be meaningless if not interpreted correctly. Success can be achieved by following the lead of other industries that have shifted away from a "this is how we have always done it" mindset.

Digital Transformation

But why all this talk about digital transformation now? Executives are being pressed daily that they need to "go digital." It's transform or be left behind.

This is not new; ERP systems began this process in the 1990s. But what does digital transformation really mean? It is not just about technology; it's about rethinking the current, often longstanding processes with a new approach where technology is not the driver but rather the enabler — new ways through evolution and innovation to change customer, vendor, employee experience. It is a mindset of continuous improvement, a shift to include more data, faster, from more devices (e.g., wearables, sensors, watches, machines, etc.) to reduce risk and increase insights by transforming data into intelligent decision-making. This includes artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), robotic process automation (RPA), blockchain and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).

Bottom Line

The key to success will be to understand where and what technology is relevant and what to invest in. Lack of clarity could prove to be expensive, wasting effort and resources and potentially impeding organizational success.

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Integrating data analytics with inventory management and incident command systems provides crucial real-time data for supply chain resilience.

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Content: CloudCustomer ExperienceIndustriesIntegrationSupply Chain

3 top priorities for consumer goods companies

The consumer goods industry is being rapidly transformed by multiple, irresistible forces. External market realities driven by Covid-19 and supply chain disruptions have led to full ships and empty shelves for many categories in this sector. Consumer consumption habits and buying behaviors are changing and brand-driven direct-to-consumer programs are taking off. These major shifts are forcing consumer goods companies to focus on three pressing needs.

Digital supply networks

Building increased resiliency and agility in supply chain planning and execution has become the No. 1 priority of many consumer goods companies. Disruption of global supplies due to Covid shutdowns and labor shortages have forced them to look at sourcing and transportation in a new light. Realtime data about supply availability, transportation capacity and expected delivery dates has become essential to dealing with disruption and shortages. Creating real resiliency and agility requires ongoing investment in real-time data, advanced analytics and improved use of AI and machine learning (ML) to identify critical problems and possible alternatives early.

To achieve this, CPG companies require a modern cloud platform that helps manage the full data lifecycle, from information capture and exchange to integration and governance.  A digital supply network can provide these capabilities to companies both large and small and can deliver significant advantages. Organizations focused on implementing ethical sourcing programs, supply chain control towers and digital twins will find that a digital supply network can rapidly accelerate these kinds of data-driven programs.

Consumer goods companies are prioritizing supply chain investments for resiliency and growth, changing the legacy view of supply chain as a cost center. Gaining end-to-end supply chain visibility and diversifying suppliers and manufactures can improve performance. Creating deep integrations with partners helps create resiliency and agility in planning and execution, transforming supply chains into digital supply networks. This focus allows improved supply chain performance overall and is especially important as companies accelerate direct-to-consumer operations.

Autonomous supply chains (IoT/AI)

Data delivers deeper insights into the critical performance of supply chains. Companies are leveraging exponential growth in supply chain data to obtain more meaningful insights that help optimize processes and drive greater efficiencies. One of the major advantages of a digital supply network is the depth of integration and data exchange that is possible with trusted trading partners. Exchange of data on supply, demand and logistics scheduling increases insight, accuracy and automation in operations. Enabling control towers to monitor performance and dashboards to deal with disruptions improves overall performance, product availability and customer satisfaction.

The increase in available data from the end-to-end supply chain will provide rich training sets for the application of AI and ML to the increasingly demand-sensitive and customer-centric supply chains in consumer goods. Realtime data enables the use of digital twins to better understand critical issues including inventory optimization, transportation planning and bottleneck detection. This provides a better understanding of the organization’s supply chain dynamics, behavior and performance. Improvements in automation and augmented decision making will continue to increase as labor shortages and inflationary pressures grow.

Direct to consumer

Integrating customer data, communications, media and messaging to create great personal journeys that engage customers is a challenge for this industry. In response, companies are launching direct-to-consumer (DTC) programs at a rapid rate, and omnichannel, data-driven engagement will only continue to grow in the years ahead. New DTC-only brands have disrupted whole categories with strong online services and social influencer-based engagement. Building a strong brand experience for customers is a priority for every consumer goods company. Successful DTC programs are dependent upon great customer experiences fueled by personal brand journeys. Brands that can personalize messaging and engage customers drive increased loyalty at the store and open the door to direct purchases and even subscription opportunities.

Consumer goods companies adopting a hybrid DTC-wholesale model will need to strike a balance between the two retail strategies. It is becoming clear that companies need to consider both paths to market to support improved growth and profitability.

Addressing these three priorities requires connecting people, systems and things in agile, extended ecosystems that allow companies to gain insight and optimize processes. This is driving the adoption of digital supply networks and autonomous supply chains as companies take advantage of the opportunity to easily connect with partners more deeply in a managed cloud community. Improved supply-chain performance also improves the customer experience leading to better loyalty and sales.

Not every integration partner can provide the scale, visibility and optimization to sufficiently address these priorities. Learn more about how OpenText solutions can help consumer goods companies achieve their goals.

Scott Lundstrom

Scott is a long time industry analyst, CIO, and software developer supporting complex regulated businesses in healthcare, life sciences, and aerospace. Scott founded the health industry practice at IDC Research and lead this group for 13 years. Scott also held leadership roles in research focused on AI, Cloud, SaaS, enterprise applications and analytics.

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Government agencies support hospitals and pharmacies by implementing policies like importing essential medicines and regulating production, delivery, and prices.

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The Ministry of Pharmaceutical Industry has informed all pharmaceutical institutions that the Ministry of Commerce and Export Promotion has exempted pharmaceuticals and medical supplies from the compulsory submission of the document issued by the National Agency for the Promotion of Foreign Trade (ALJAX), within the files of bank localization for import operations, due to its specificities.
The Ministry of Pharmaceutical Industry said in a statement that the control of the national pharmaceutical market is carried out by the interests of the Ministry of Pharmaceutical Industry, in accordance with its authority, which issues discretionary programs for import and control certificates for essential materials of high therapeutic value, not manufactured locally or those produced in limited quantities that do not meet national needs, after careful study and evaluation of production capabilities and stock levels as well as national needs.
The ministry said that this measure comes within the framework of government coordination and consultation between sectors, to ensure the availability of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, and to protect and promote national production.
Sources close to the subject told Al-Shorouk that the Ministry of Pharmaceutical Industries moved to liberate from the restrictions imposed by the Ministry of Commerce on the import of medical and pharmaceutical supplies, after a shortage of supplies to hospitals and various health institutions with these sensitive materials, in addition to the faltering of the National Agency for the Promotion of Foreign Trade (ALJAX) in studying import files and its delay in responding to economic dealers. It is the only body authorized to determine the needs of the market.
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2023 shortage of drugs reported information has been fully dealt with
Related LINKS http: / / www.CRNT.com 2024-03-14 15: 33: 32
Beijing, March 14 / Xinhua News Agency reported that the reporter learned from the National Health and Health Commission on the 13th, the national, provincial, municipal and county four shortage drug classification system gradually improved and effective operation, 2023 shortage drug reporting information has been fully addressed, and the temporary import work of clinically urgent drugs is done.
It is understood that in the near future, the national and provincial shortage of drug supply guarantee work will discuss the mechanism of various units to ensure the supply of stable prices as the focus, and continue to improve the classification of shortage of drugs to deal with the ability to deal with, multi-dimensional improvement of shortage of drug information monitoring.
The National Health and Health Commission relies on the national public medical and health institutions shortage of drug information direct reporting system and other monitoring conditions to carry out monitoring and early warning and regular reporting.
The State Medical Insurance Bureau continuously monitors the national shortage list of drugs and clinically necessary drugs that are vulnerable to shortage, focusing on the abnormal high prices and distribution data of the listed drugs.
The National Drug Administration continues to collect information on the production supply and shutdown reports of shortage of pharmaceutical products.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology relies on the shortage drug production supply monitoring and early warning platform to carry out dynamic monitoring and analysis.
The Ministry of Commerce organized some large pharmaceutical wholesale and retail enterprises to pay close attention to the supply and demand situation of pharmaceutical products.
At the same time, the whole chain guarantees the stable supply of shortage drugs.
The National Drug Administration continues to promote the review and approval of national shortage drug list varieties, and carries out the basic information labeling and data management of shortage drugs.
The State Medical and Health Insurance Bureau fully implements the policy of online procurement of shortage drugs, and explores the centralized procurement of shortage drugs.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology continues to support the construction of centralized production bases for small varieties of drugs, and establish regular shortages of drugs at the central and local levels.
The Ministry of Ecology and Environment takes flexible enforcement action to help enterprises rectify the situation in a timely manner if the environment of the enterprises involved in the production of pharmaceutical raw materials or preparations violates the law.
The SASAC of the State Council continues to promote state-owned enterprises to fulfill their social responsibilities in the supply of shortage drugs and play the function of "cistern".
The National Post Office continues to promote the construction of a comprehensive postal service platform, supporting the postal group to give full play to its network advantages and continuously improve its medical distribution service capabilities.
In addition, strengthen the enforcement of illegal acts.
The General Administration of Market Supervision investigates and punishes illegal acts such as monopoly in the field of pharmaceutical products according to law, and plays a warning and education role in major typical cases.
The General Administration of Taxation further increased the investigation and punishment of tax violations by some pharmaceutical enterprises, and standardized the tax order in the pharmaceutical field.
According to the clues of the problem and illegal facts, the National Medical Insurance Bureau talked about the relevant pharmaceutical companies to reduce the level of drug prices involved, and block the chain of benefits of manufacturing shortages and monopoly price increases.
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Content: Cai Ing-wen: Thanks for 8 years of support, the epidemic and the government work together
Journalist Chen Wei-uei / reporting from Taipei
President Tsai Ing-wen attended the Spring Wine Dinner of the National Federation of Pharmacists of the Republic of China (ROC) on the evening of today (25), saying that the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Food and Drug Administration and the National Health Insurance Administration have actively responded to the shortage of drugs.
In the future, Taiwan will enter an ultra-aging society, medical treatment combined with technology will become the norm, and the government will continue to improve and amend laws and regulations in a timely manner, looking forward to improving medical services.
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Tsai Ing-wen said in her speech that this year, the All Federation of Pharmacists Association will soon reach its 44th anniversary, and the past presidents and supervisors are committed to fighting for the rights of pharmacists, and also let the Federation become a bridge for communication between the government and the industry, so that the government can hear the voice of the pharmaceutical industry and be closer to public opinion in policy.
She would like to thank President Huang Jinshun for his leadership over the past few years, as well as all the good friends of pharmacists to protect the health of the people of the country.
At the same time, she also wants to spend her old age, and wish everyone a happy and safe New Year.
In the past few years, in the face of the challenges of the epidemic, all pharmacists have worked hard to stand on the front line, not only to mobilize drugs, but also to help the government release masks and rapid screening tests.
Tsai Ing-wen said that in addition to going deep into the community and the Changshu Center, the Association also shares Taiwan's experience in epidemic prevention and public health with pharmaceutical organizations around the world, so that the world can see Taiwan, give full play to the spirit of "Taiwan Can Help," and contribute its own efforts to the world.
Tsai Ing-wen pointed out that the government knows that the world is facing a shortage of drugs in recent years, and has asked the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Food and Drug Administration, and the National Health Insurance Administration to actively respond to the problem.
At present, the "Drug Market Monitoring System" has been launched. This system will strengthen the monitoring of the supply of pharmaceutical products in the middle market, so that the front-line pharmacists can query the inventory of pharmaceutical products more quickly and ensure the rights and interests of the public.
Tsai Ing-wen stressed that Taiwan's society is entering an ultra-old age, and in the case of fewer children, the medical needs for home care will continue to increase.
In the future, medical combined technology will become the norm, such as telemedicine services and smart medical services that have been opened up.
The government will also continue to improve and amend regulations in a timely manner to ensure information security and patient privacy, and improve medical services.
Finally, Tsai thanked everyone for their support during her eight-year term in office, which allowed Taiwan to “pass through and overcome the barriers. ”
During the 100-year pandemic, I would like to thank my friends and the government for their hard work, so that Taiwan's epidemic prevention performance has been recognized by the world, and so that the public can better understand the role of pharmacists in the national epidemic prevention and medical system.
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Policies to address medication shortages include exempting pharmaceutical imports from documentation, lifting import restrictions, and establishing a drug shortage treatment center.

The global medication shortage requires a comprehensive approach involving governments, healthcare systems, and manufacturers.