When you need a prescription from your doctor, have you ever thought about how the medication makes its way to the pharmacy and then to you?
From the creation of the medicine to being available at the pharmacy – this process is called a pharmaceutical supply chain.
What are pharmaceutical supply chains?
Pharmaceutical supply chains are the series of events, actions and organisations that facilitate the distribution of medicines from development to dispensing to the patient. It’s the way prescription medications are delivered to patients in one piece.
A developing market
The pharmaceutical market is evolving at a rapid rate, and with more drug therapies and costly medications out there with shorter life cycles, the pharmaceutical supply chain is becoming more complex.
The production of a new medicine is only the very first step in getting it to the person who requires the prescription. It’s one of the most complex logistical chains around the world, and it’s not cheap.
Investment in medicines is not just about the products we buy, but our ability to access them. With a reliable supply chain, we have better healthcare costs and an improvement in patient care.
How does the pharmaceutical supply chain work?
Let’s take a look at the pharmaceutical supply chain and how it works:
- The pharmaceutical supply chain begins with raw materials and finishes with a patient being able to purchase the product at the store.
- Products don’t go directly from the manufacturer to the store – they make many stops along the way. There are challenges and procedures at each step, and if you know the supply chain for the product, you can help to ensure it’s delivered on time. You can also use the schedules for pricing and ordering to ensure the product gets there on time.
- Manufacturing and packaging of medicines happen across multiple sites, and once the materials for the medication are delivered, the final product is created in pieces.
- A different manufacturer then assembles these pieces and puts them together.
- Completed products go to yet another place for packaging and further shipping.
- Shipping then takes place to the right stores and hospitals.
- The medications are then dispensed to the patient.
Interested in how Origin can help streamline your supply chain or manage the whole process for you? Read about our innovative Supply Chain Management 3.0 offering or speak to our team today.
Common pharma supply chain challenges
The whole process, from drug development to the healthcare providers who receive the drugs, is all going through some massive changes. And with this comes new challenges to the efficient development and delivery of medicines.
Firstly, the challenge of counterfeit drugs threatens to impact health outcomes and damage trust in the pharmaceutical industry. This is being combated through the introduction of digital to the healthcare industry, with trading partners able to identify and remove any counterfeit drugs through mass serialisation, digital watermarks and more.
While the development of new and effective medicines is delivering positive health outcomes, it is simultaneously posing challenges in the supply chain. Temperature-sensitive drugs and biologics require refrigeration and specialist handling, which means the whole chain is shifting to adapt to the new drugs on the market. This takes time and planning to ensure it works seamlessly and without interruption.
Plus, there is also always the risk of unforeseen challenges – most recently experienced in the COVID-19 pandemic. Firms must remain agile – in terms of their supply chain partners and providers – and in their delivery models to mitigate the impact of disruption when it strikes.
The impact of pharmaceutical supply chains on drug costs
Unsurprisingly, the pharmaceutical supply chain greatly impacts the experience for the patient – reflecting the current supply chain environment. This includes the cost of medicines.
Challenges in the pharma supply chain – including delays, material costs and storage requirements, and fraud – drive up prices across the logistical process and eventually for the patient.
For those in big pharma, the focus should be on the patient experience and health outcomes, meaning increasing supply chain costs must be tackled to prevent pricing-out patients and impacting healthcare.
This means developing practical solutions to the challenges posed, including streamlining technology, creating contingency plans for disruption, improving relationships with partners, developing new techniques such as Just In Time (JIT) delivery models and more.Top of Form
Supporting pharmaceutical supply chains
Origin was developed to correct the poor methods and practices within the pharmaceutical primary packaging supply chain.
Since then, we’ve never stopped helping clients across the globe to remain agile and protected against disruption.
Our approach to transporting pharmaceutical and healthcare products from A to B is called Supply Chain Management 3.0 – and is the product of time, research, capital and attention to detail in the systems and facilities that create a supply chain model that remains transparent, dependable and ready for anything.
Find out more about our approach to supply chain management today.
