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Covid Vaccine Challenges – Abidance To Defined Health Norms Stays As Lifeguard

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There isn’t even a shade of doubt today that Covid-vaccines are coming. However, some critical questions in this area continue to hang in the air, and are expected to remain so for some more time. Thus, every news on the development of Covid vaccines, particularly in their late stages of clinical trials, fuels billions of hopes and excitement, across the world.

The same thing happened, when Pfizer and BioNTech announced on November 09, 2020, some key details on their vaccine candidate. These include, ‘vaccine candidate was found to be more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19 in participants without evidence of prior SARS-CoV-2 infection in the first interim efficacy analysis’ from Phase 3 studies. The release also highlighted, ‘Submission for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) planned for soon after the required safety milestone is achieved, which is currently expected to occur in the third week of November.’

Amid these new developments, it is also now beyond doubt that the pandemic will be brought under control, eventually. Interestingly, none possibly knows when it will happen. There doesn’t seem to be any clearly charted – time-bound pathway in place for the same, either – not just yet. That said, from the overall developments in this area for the past 10 months, especially in India, – two other crucial questions also remain elusive, as follows:

  • Has the country started preparing itself against any Covid-like future biological threats? If so, in what manner?
  • As India conducts the world’s largest  Universal Immunization Program (UIP), how robust is the country’s vaccine supply chain to effectively inoculate every Indian with Covid-vaccine?

I have already deliberated on several aspects of the former question in one of my previous articles, in this write-up. Therefore, this write-up will focus on the second query, with a specific reference to the continued relevance of abidance of the defined health norms for some more time, especially for my pharma industry readers. Accordingly, all astute pharma professionals in India, need to accept this new reality, and rewrite their brand demand generation strategies for the new normal. Let me start with how the cold-chain logistics for vaccines, in general, work in the country.

The cold-chain logistics for vaccines:

A paper published by the BBC News, on November 11, 2020, captured how the cold-chain logistics for vaccines, in general, work almost in all countries, including India. The article is titled, ‘Coronavirus: How soon can we expect a working vaccine?’ The steps involved in this exercise are as follows:

  1. Vaccines transported to destination countries (imported varieties).
  2. Refrigerated trucks for transportation to designated cold rooms.
  3. Distribution in portable and appropriate ice boxes to regional centers.
  4. Stored in electric fridges between 2 degree to 10 degree Celsius (for most of the existing vaccines.)
  5. Carried in portable and appropriate ice boxes to local venues for vaccination to individuals.

Associated challenges:

As the above paper highlighted, some important associated challenges in this space, which are mostly faced by the developing countries, like India, are as follows:

  • Adding a new vaccine to the existing mix could pose huge logistical problems for those already facing a difficult environment.
  • According to prescribed norms, all Vaccines in India requires a storage temperature in the range of +2 degree to +8 degree Celsius, except for Oral Polio Vaccine which need to be stored in the frozen state (-25 degree – 15 degree Celsius) at all stores except PHC/ CHC/Health post. The new vaccine ROTAVAC (116E rotavirus) by Bharat Biotech is being recommended to be stored at (-15 to -25 degree Celsius) till the intermediate stores and to be stored in the range of +2 degree to +8 degree Celsius at the last storage points like PHC/ CHC/Health posts. This has not posed much of a challenge. However, expanding it to cover the entire population of the country can be an “immense task.”
  • It is worth noting, although, AstraZeneca vaccine would need the regular cold chain between 2C and 8C, the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine would need ultra-cold chain – storage at around minus 70C to 80C.
  • ‘Maintaining vaccines under cold chain is already one of the biggest challenges’ that countries face, and this will be exacerbated with the introduction of a new Covid vaccine.
  • Thus, more cold chain equipment will require to be added, making sure that fuel is always available (to run the freezer and refrigerators in absence of electricity) and repair/replace them when they break and transport them wherever you need them.

Curiously, India’s cold-chain logistics that cater to one of the world’s largest immunization programs for children and mothers, may not be enough for Covid-19 vaccination of the country’s 1.3 billion population.

Why India’s cold-chain logistics may not be enough for Covid vaccination:

Before coming to the above question, it is important to note that India is not just the pharmacy of the world, contributing over 20 per cent by value to the global generics market, and over 40 per cent (by volume) of US drugs. According to a recent report of Bernstein Research, Indian vaccine producers, such as, Serum Institute of India supply the bulk – over 40% of the global capacity of 5.7 billion doses annually. Home to some of the world’s biggest vaccine makers, India produces 2.3 billion doses of vaccines yearly, with 74% for export, said the report.

Regardless of this fact, India’s cold-chain logistics may not be enough for Covid vaccination of its entire population, primarily because it is currently geared for children. ‘India Spend’ report of October 13, 2020 titled, ‘India’s COVID-19 Dilemma: Adults Need Vaccines, Supply Chains Geared For Children,’ presents several such interesting facts to ponder over the following points:

  • Being the world’s largest in the Universal Immunization Program (UIP), India targets 26.7 million newborns and 29 million pregnant women every year (55 million people in total, or 4% of the total population). This requires 390 million doses of vaccines, over nine million sessions. But, can this infrastructure effectively handle Covid vaccination of 1.3 billion people?
  • The above question arises, because India has planned to administer 400 to 500 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, mostly to its adult population by the first two quarters of 2021. For this effort, the country will have to nearly double the total number of vaccinations given in the public sector program. Thus, one can well imagine, what a humongous task, it will be for vaccination of 1.3 billion population, at the shortest possible time.

Which is why – although, over the last decades, India has created a primary vaccination infrastructure, and gained enough experience in this area, these may not be enough for Covid mass vaccination program, as stated above.

What it would it entail:

As the above ‘India Spend’ report indicates, this effort will entail:

  • Ramping up capacity to administer vaccines,
  • Expanding and further strengthening cold-chain infrastructure and process of storing and transporting vaccines safely, besides logistics,
  • Ensuring adequate availability of ancillary items, such as syringes, glass vials, and intensive training of healthcare workers.

Without these, even if there is a life-saving vaccine available for COVID-19, people will not have access to effective vaccines, the report reiterates. From this perspective, let’s now have a glance to India’s current vaccine cold-chain logistics and infrastructure.

India’s current vaccine cold-chain logistics:

Currently, most vaccines in India are distributed by the Governments UIP mechanism. Accordingly, for the child immunization program, almost the entire vaccine cold chain is publicly funded and managed.

Going by the official statistics, at present there are in total – about 7,645 cold storages in the countrywith 68 per cent of the capacity being used for potato, while 30 per cent is a multi-commodity cold storage. ‘Most of these cater to farm produce in rural areas with ambient temperature storage and therefore are not pharmaceutical ready.’ As the industry sources indicate, ‘only a small part of the remaining 10 per cent of the industry is organized and capable of playing a key role in the distribution of the Covid vaccine.’

The comprehensive multi-year UIP plan for 2018-22 of India also specifies, while India’s UIP is currently supported by more than 27,000 functional cold chain points, only 750 (3 per cent) are located at or above the district level. The rest is located below the district level.

Nevertheless, the ongoing pandemic prompts India to administer Covid vaccines to its entire population of 1.3 billion population, over the shortest possible period of time. To achieve this goal, the cold chain industry of the country is warming up to handle this vaccine distribution challenge, maintaining the integrity of the cold chain.

The only organized pan-India cold chain player with 31 facilities is, reportedly, Snowman Logistics. Other companies, who are mostly the regional operators in this business, include Coldex, ColdStar, Western Refrigeration and JWL. Yet another report indicates, Maersk, is also poised inking a global logistics deal with US-based COVID-19 vaccine candidate COVAXX, including India. Be that as it may, the bottom-line remains, effective Covid vaccination program would not possibly commence until this gap is successfully bridged.

Conclusion:

Meantime, as on November 15, 2020 morning, India recorded a staggering figure of 8,814,902 of Coronavirus cases with 129,674 deaths. The average number of daily new cases appeared to have slowed down in the last few weeks, except Delhi. But, the threat of further spread of Covid infection, in waves, remains as it was before.

Robust and high-quality vaccine cold chain logistics in India assumes so much of importance, because of one critical factor – to preserve its effectiveness till administered to an individual. This is regardless of whether a person is located in cities, small towns or in the remote hinterlands of the country. The successful accomplishment of this task is crucial to combat Covid pandemic, until scientists find any predictable long-term solution.

The good news is, according to a new report: ‘Amid cold chain blues, Pfizer looks to powder vaccine formula in 2021.’ BBC News also reported: ‘A group of Indian scientists are working on such a vaccine. The “warm” or a heat-stable vaccine, they claim, can be stored at 100C for 90 minutes, at 70C for about 16 hours, and at 37C for more than a month and more.’

While the world awaits to witness this happening, we all should recognize a current reality. Tough challenges are still looming large on the way of effective Covid mass vaccination programs, especially for all adult population in India. Thus, the gravity for abidance to basic infection avoidance norms – wearing masks, social distancing and avoiding crowded places, stay unchanged. Accordingly, all astute pharma professionals in India, I reckon, need to accept the prevailing reality, and rewrite their brand demand generation strategies for the new normal.

By: Tapan J. Ray    

Disclaimer: The views/opinions expressed in this article are entirely my own, written in my individual and personal capacity. I do not represent any other person or organization for this opinion.

 

India Being World’s Third largest Covid Vaccine Maker: Will All Indians Benefit?

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Apprehensions on the time of availability notwithstanding, equitable access to Covid vaccines for all, remain the best hope to leash the deadly virus, as the pandemic overwhelms the world. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) ‘Coronavirus Update 37’ of October 06, 2020, as of October 02, 2020, there are 42 COVID-19 candidate vaccines in clinical evaluation of which 10 in Phase III trials.

Recently, the article, published in the Harvard Business Review on April 02, 2020, also flagged this critical area – ‘A Covid-19 Vaccine Will Need Equitable, Global Distribution.’ The paper highlighted: ‘The time to prepare for globally distributing a Covid-19 vaccine in a way that is effective and equitable is now. It will have a long-term payoff by helping to prevent future pandemics, which scientists predict will be more common as the earth’s climate warms.’

Even Bill Gates’ article, published in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) on February 28, 2020, expressed a similar apprehension. The article is titled - ‘Responding to Covid-19 – A Once-in-a-Century Pandemic?’ Gates also articulated: “During a pandemic, vaccines and antivirals can’t simply be sold to the highest bidder. They should be available and affordable for people who are at the heart of the outbreak and in greatest need. Not only is such distribution the right thing to do, it’s also the right strategy for short-circuiting transmission and preventing future pandemics.”

He too urged all concerned to ensure that during a pandemic, vaccines and antivirals aren’t ‘simply be sold to the highest bidder.’ On the contrary, these should be made available, affordable and accessible to all. ‘Not only is such distribution the right thing to do, it’s also the right strategy for short-circuiting transmission and preventing future pandemics,’ he asserted.

Does any authority pay heed to these suggestions? The question remains unanswered. Interestingly, on September 17, 2020 by a Press Release, Oxfam International reported, ‘leading wealthy nations representing just 13 percent of the world’s population have already cornered more than half (51 percent) of the promised doses of Covid-19 vaccine candidates.’ This is regardless of where these vaccines are manufactured, including India.

These prompt one to wonder, ‘Would India’s possible rise as the world’s third largest vaccine manufacturer benefit all Indians, with affordable and equitable access to Covid prevention shots? In this article, I shall dwell in this area.

India emerges as the world’s third largest Covid vaccine producer:

According to August 24, 2020 edition of the Nature publication, if all of the frontrunner candidates of Covid vaccines are approved, more than 10 billion doses could be available by the end of 2021. Most of these vaccines will be made in the North America and Europe. The top Covid vaccine manufacturing countries are estimated to be the United States, followed by the United Kingdom, India, Norway and France, the report highlights.

However, wealthy countries have already struck deals to buy more than two billion doses of Coronavirus vaccine in a scramble that could leave limited supplies in the coming year. For example, as the above Nature article indicates, publicly announced estimated capacity to 2021 of Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid vaccine, is 2.94 billion. Interestingly Serum Institute of India (SII) signed an agreement to manufacture over I billion doses in 2021.

Whereas, another report of September 29, 2020, stated that SII will make available 200 million doses by 2021, at $3 dose to a group of at least 62 ‘low- and middle-income countries (LMIC)’ that includes India. This arrangement does not make clear how many of the 200 million doses will be made available in India. Curiously, SII reportedly, is also one of the global partners for the production of Britain’s Covid-19 vaccine on a large scale, once it gains regulatory approval.

Growing ‘vaccine nationalism’ needs to be prevented:

Thus, if one looks at the macro picture, a small group of rich nations, representing just 13 percent of the global population has bought 51 percent of the supply of leading Covid-19 vaccine contenders, according to the above Press Release of Oxfam International.

Many public health experts have expressed grave concern on such developments. They have also articulated in multiple forums that the world is not going to get rid of the pandemic until it gets rid of Covid-19 from everywhere. Terming this approach vaccine nationalism, the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) urged all concerned, at his August 18, 2020 briefing that this needs to be prevented by all, urgently.

No clarity yet, on whether the vaccine will be free for all Indians:

Although, there is no reported ‘vaccine nationalism’ in India, thus far, for understandable reasons, there isn’t any clarity, either, on whether Covid vaccines will be free for equitable access to all in India. As reported on October 27, 2020, Dr. V.K. Paul of NITI Aayog, who heads the Centre’s expert committee on vaccines confirmed this by saying:

“We’ll have more clarity in the weeks ahead when trial data from the ongoing trials (phase 3) of the Serum Institute of India (which is testing the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine) is available. The success of it and the other candidates will determine the availability and the dosage required and then we can discuss financing.”

Interestingly, free Covid vaccination for all in Bihar, has featured in ruling party’s the election manifestos, if they win the recent state assembly poll. This raises a doubt for the common man, whether or not this vaccination will be free to all in other states, as well, where such promises are not being made.

Ambiguity also on how much it will cost to the nation:

As on date, avoidable ambiguity prevails in many areas of Covid-19 vaccination process in India, for various reasons. For example, ‘Will India have Rs 80,000 crore for Covid-19 vaccine,’ asked the top vaccine maker in India, on September 27, 2020. Whereas, as reported on October 23, 2020, ‘the government has set aside about Rs 50,000 crore ($7 billion) to vaccinate Indian citizens.’

The same report also wrote, the Coronavirus vaccine, once available, will be distributed under a special Covid-19 immunization program. The Centre will procure the vaccine directly to make it available to the ‘priority groups’ free-of-charge through the existing network of states and districts. States have been asked not to chart separate pathways of procurement. This is expected to coveraround 25 Crore people by July next year, according to the Union Health Minister of India.

This also appeared in the Bloomberg/Quint article of October 17, 2020. It reported, India is identifying 300 million people who will receive the initial dose of a coronavirus vaccine. Priority will be given to workers in high-risk sectors such as police, health care, sanitation, elderly people and those with co-morbidities. The beneficiaries of vaccine in the first phase will receive an estimated 600 million doses and implementation plan aims to cover over 23 percent of the population.

Assuming that Rs. 50,000 Crore will be the vaccination cost for only 23 percent of the Indian population, what will it cost to nation to vaccinate 100 percent of the population against Covid? How will rest of Indians get access to Covid vaccination? Will the citizens be inoculated sans any out of expenditure for the same? If so, why free Covid vaccination has been promised only for Bihar, in the recent Assembly election, only in case the ruling party returns to power, as stated above?

Humongous logistics challenge for India: 

Even if, India plans to administer Covid-19 vaccine to just 23 percent of the population, covering its high-risk population, across the country, in the first half of 202, it will involve 400-500 million doses. Will SII be able to deliver so many doses by June 2020? However, maintaining uninterrupted ‘cold chain’, in the entire logistics process – including local transportation and storage, wherever required, till these are administered to people, will be a humongous task for India.

While the required storage temperature of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is -20 degree Celsius, some of the most promising candidates, such as, Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccines need to be stored at as low as -80 degrees Celsius, till administered.  

Covid vaccination cost is not just the cost of a vaccine:

To vaccinate 1.3 billion people of India, the Government needs to train in advance, a large number of health workers to accomplish the task. Alongside, the supply chain, including a demanding and uninterrupted countrywide ‘cold chain’ will also need to factor in other costs. These will include, availability of ancillary items like syringes, among others.  The complexity of vaccine logistics further increases manifold, as 70 percent of the country’s population lives in rural India. Thus, the net outlay for Covid vaccination will be much more than a vaccine cost.

What happens, if these are not achieved with military precision, much before vaccine manufacturing commences? In that case, I reckon, it is quite likely that efficacious COVID -19 vaccines may not be made accessible even to 23 percent of the high-risk people, such as police, health care and sanitation staff, elderly people and those with serious co-morbidities.

Conclusion:

The economic, social and health care concern over Covid pandemic continues in India. As of November 01, 2020 morning, India recorded a staggering figure of 8,184,082 of Coronavirus cases with 122,149 deaths. During this health crisis, among several other critical areas, India is also still learning – the hard way, how fragile is its public health care infrastructure. Covid pandemic has possibly caused the worst ever health care catastrophe in the country, due to years of negligence – that continues even today.

Besides above legacy issues, meager deployment of resources, low overall health awareness for Covid, inadequate number of health care personnel, insufficient Covid testing kits to detect the virus and prevent it from spreading, is still playing havoc. Moreover, many epidemiologists continue to suggest that India’s real infection rates are far higher.

In this setting, if, as and when subsequent Covid waves will strike, the number of cases is likely to grow exponentially – again. Thus, inoculating the entire population with Covid-19 vaccines is the most desirable way out, for India to prevent this health calamity from lingering too long. As Mark Feinberg, head of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative in New York City had said in the August 24, 2020 edition of Nature publication: “We’re not going to get rid of the pandemic until we get rid of it everywhere.”

Here comes the importance of equitable access to Covid vaccination for all in India. Although, a number of international organizations, including the W.H.O and Gavi, are working hard to reduce this threat, the concern over inequitable access to Covid vaccines, still remains a real one. Intriguingly, despite India being positioned as the world’s third largest Covid-19 vaccine producer, no one is still sure due to multiple reasons, whether all Indians will benefit from it – probably not even the Government of India.

By: Tapan J. Ray    

Disclaimer: The views/opinions expressed in this article are entirely my own, written in my individual and personal capacity. I do not represent any other person or organization for this opinion.

 

 

Taming Two Critical Covid Uncertainties For Pharma’s Sustainable Growth

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The reasons behind a great urgency of the Governments, besides high expectations of the general public, to have the ‘ultimate solution’ very soon, against the ongoing pandemic, are understandable. However, various media-hyped narratives on their clinical trials, and timeframe for expected launch – ranging from November this year to anytime in 2021, are making many experts to raise eyebrows on the scientific processes followed for Covid vaccine development.

Exact answers to the ultimate efficacy standard, safety profile and dates of their availability to the entire population, are still not clear – not even to many domain experts. Besides, two other critical and fundamental questions in India, are related to huge financial resources and other wherewithal, such as, countrywide stringent cold-chain logistics network, required to achieve this goal.

While effective, safe and high-quality vaccines, as and when these will come, will be pivotal to contain the alarming spread of Covid-19 – and that too in a wave after wave manner. Alongside, the intense search for effective anti-Covid medicines are also expected to come to fruition. Doctors will then have in their arsenals a number of highly effective alternatives, that can predictably cure individuals, when infected by this lethal virus.

It causes a great concern when someone asks, when will those days of great relief to all come? For, those days may or may not be very soon – could well be for an indefinite period. No one seems to know the answer, yet.

Until then, pharma companies can’t afford to remain in a ‘quick-fix mode’ to address the problems related to Covid related market and consumer mindset changes. Choosing this path could eventually prove to be very costly, especially for the lost time in leveraging some key opportunities. Moving in that direction, would entail rebuilding the organization by creating a new work-culture – a mindset to be all-time ready for any disruptive changes in business. Most importantly, if or as and when it comes, the organization should not get as overwhelmed, as is happening during the current global pandemic.

In this article, I shall deliberate the following two critical and interrelated Covid-19 issues:

  • The uncertainty in achieving what everybody is expecting to get right away – getting a preventive vaccine or a cure for the infected patients.
  • Inordinate delay in getting prompt medical care by many patients for non-Covid related serious ailments, leading to complexity of the disease. How long this situation will continue still remains uncertain.

As things stand today, these uncertainties could continue for an indefinite period, making some of the Covid related changes irreversible. Thus, my aim will be, first to recap where we are today with these niggles. And then, focusing on the crucial need to pave a balanced pathway – uncharted by anyone, for destination success – in the new world order. Let me begin with the first issue first.

The uncertainty in achieving what everybody is expecting:

Although, some Covid vaccines, reportedly, will be ready by early 2021, uncertainties and delays are still anticipated on the way. Some the reasons may include the following:

  • A critical challenge: About 5.6 billion people worldwide would need to be immune in order to end the pandemic (NEJM). Thus, vaccination process may take years to achieve the coverage necessary for everyone to be protected.
  • Huge investment required: India would need to invest between Rs 3,000 -5,000 crore to create additional facilities for making a huge number of vaccines, required for the Indian population. Currently no one has the capacity to manufacture it for 1.3 billion Indian populations. Moreover, vaccine alone is not the solution to the COVID-19 problem, according to experts.
  • High vaccine cost in India: As these vaccines come from a very difficult platform its cost is going to be significantly higher than many other vaccines, so there is going to be a requirement to think about how we are going to fund this.
  • Coronavirus mutating, potentially evolving: As reported on September 24, 2020, Covid’s continual mutation may make it increasingly contagious. The study says, it’s possible that when our population-level immunity gets high, this Coronavirus will find ways to get around our immunity.
  • The logistical challenge of a lifetime: Getting billions of doses of COVID-19 vaccines around the world quickly, would require 15,000 flights and 15 million cooling boxes. Stringent temperature control requirements for the vaccine supply chain must not be compromised at any point, not even in rural India. It’s worth noting, some of these vaccines may need to be kept at temperatures as low as -80 degrees Celsius. Currently, even in the developed world, the most efficient medical supply chain conventionally distributes vaccines at +2–8°C.
  • Vaccines may not provide complete protection: If COVID-19 re-infections are common, “vaccines might not completely protect against the virus” and would instead require a design similar to seasonal flu shots to protect from new variants. Interestingly. India may, reportedly, approve covid-19 vaccines that show 50 percent efficacy in clinical trials.

Converting problems into opportunities:

Such uncertainties may not only aggravate people’s overall health risks, but also their exposure to Covid infection. Drug companies, drug authorities and various Governments have been working hard on these issues. However, as flagged earlier, amid this health crisis, there is also another growing concern of a very serious nature. It pertains to many people delaying their non-Covid related medical care and medical interventions, for various reasons.

Pharmaceutical companies can convert this problem into a golden business opportunity with ‘patient-centric’ innovative strategies having a cutting-edge, and from a number of platforms. Let me illustrate this point with an interesting example of an initiative taken by a global pharma major, in this area.

A pace setting initiative:

On September 22, 2020, Fierce Pharma reported, ‘J&J wants everyone to know that taking care of their health can’t wait—even during a pandemic.’ This effort is based on the findings of a recent Harris Poll commissioned by them. This study revealed, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused many Americans (68 percent) to delay healthcare treatment. It ranges from standard routine exams to important elective surgeries to ER visits – with physicians sharing concerns about the long-term impact of patients delaying care. The situation is expected to be no different in other countries of the world, including India.

Based on this finding Johnson & Johnson (J&J) have recently launched a US-based online initiative, aimed at giving both patients and physicians information and resources about health care options. This unique campaign has been named – “My Health Can’t Wait”.

By a statement J&J announced: “As the largest healthcare company in the world, we are committed to helping people live their healthiest lives, which means getting the care they need, when they need it.” It added: “Through My Health Can’t Wait, we hope to provide patients and healthcare providers with resources to help stay connected and prioritize their health care, both during this pandemic and in the future.” The point, especially take note of is, ‘both during this pandemic and in the future.’ This part of the above sentence of J&J, echoes the well-known management dictum – converting problem into opportunities, I add, even during the Covid pandemic.

I hope, many pharma players may also wish to pursue similar direction, responding to their own specific needs. But, not just to keep the head above water, in combating this unprecedented health crisis, but with a long-term strategic perspective – to rebuild the organization – for business excellence the new normal.

The concept reverberates:

I find the concept of ‘rebuilding the organization now, for business excellence the new normal’, reverberating in several expert voices. For example, The McKinsey ‘Briefing Note’ of September 16, 2020 – ‘COVID-19 and the great reset.’ It said: ‘The world anxiously awaits an effective COVID-19 vaccine that can be readily distributed. Until then, the priority is to re-energize organizations—to act rather than react. Even as the uncertainties of the COVID-19 crisis multiply, the goal must be to rebuild for the longer term.’

The authors emphasized, ‘a crisis has a way of bringing things to a head.’ Many believe, the coming months might be the best opportunity in memory for healthcare companies to pursue exponential innovation. This, according to McKinsey, ‘could create an additional $400 billion in value by 2025. And now is the time to claim the hundreds of billions of dollars that could be saved through productivity gains.’

Thus, I reckon, apart from creating a great business compulsion of working harder to neutralize the short-term operational constraints, Covid pandemic also provides a unique opportunity to pharma leadership. It gives a space for them for thinking long-term, and from a strategic perspective. The aim is to rebuild the organization, placing it at a higher trajectory for success, in an uncharted frontier, thus far.

Conclusion:

Meanwhile, as on September 27, 2020 morning, India had recorded a staggering figure of 5,992,532 of Coronavirus cases with 94,534 deaths. The virus’s unprecedented onslaught on the country still continues, unabated. Be that as it may, coming back to where I started from, I reckon, pharma companies, in general, could play a stellar role in converting the dual problems of uncertainties into a number of opportunities. In that process, they can create a win-win situation for all, in the health care space.

The uncertainties related to scientifically proven, safe and effective Covid drugs and vaccines will, hopefully, be addressed – sometime, by the scientists and medical researchers. However, as the above McKinsey paper wrote: ‘Until then, the priority is to re-energize organizations – to act rather than react. Even as the uncertainties of the COVID-19 crisis multiply, the goal must be to rebuild for the longer term.’ Thus, the second issue, needs to be creatively leveraged mostly by individual drug players, starting from now.

From this perspective, pharma leadership, will need to commit quality time of thinking people, supported by adequate resources, for conceiving and effectively implementing a ‘patient-centric’ strategy, that patients will fall for in the new normal. That being done, the top honchos, will require to roll up their sleeves to prioritize primary, secondary and tertiary action areas.

Instead of trying to do a little bit of everything, in all possible areas of Covid related changes in the market dynamics, ‘primary action areas’ ought to be the starting point, deploying all resources. And then, expand to the ‘secondary’ and ‘tertiary’ ones, in a well-calibrated manner. Evaluation of results and tightening the strategic loose knots, if any, should be an ongoing process. If implementation of the process requires handholding, so be it. Because, taming these two critical Covid related uncertainties, is intimately related to a sustainable growth for the pharma companies.

By: Tapan J. Ray   

Disclaimer: The views/opinions expressed in this article are entirely my own, written in my individual and personal capacity. I do not represent any other person or organization for this opinion.