Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Risk Management The Case Of Pharmaceutical Fund And Supply Agency
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2017-08
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Supply chain risk management is the systemic identification, assessment, and mitigation of
potential disruption in logistics network with the objective to reduce their negative impact on
the logistics network performance. Whilst risk has always been present in the process of
reconciling supply with demand there are a number of factors that have emerged in last
decades which have increased the level of risk. Increased demand for just in time deliveries,
the trend to outsourcing, ever changing customer demand, a reduction in supplier base are
some to mention. Any risk affecting the pharmaceutical supply chain not only waste resources
but also threaten patients’ life by hindering access to medicines. The pharmaceutical fund
and supply agency was established back in 2007 in order to introduce efficiency in the supply
chain of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies management system as well as to address
issues of drug availability and affordability. Observed problems in the supply chain
operation of the agency such as frequent shortage and stock out of medicines, and purchase
of poor quality pharmaceutical initiate to conduct this study. The study is conducted with the
objectives of identifying main supply chain risks faced by pharmaceutical fund and supply
agency, access the extent to which supply chain risk management is practised by
pharmaceutical fund and supply agency, and determine the barriers in adopting Supply chain
risk management. A case study research approach was chosen as the research strategy for
investigating the research questions. The research is a quantitative descriptive type which
originates from the prevailing descriptive qualities of both a case study approach and the
research’s conceptual frame work. The findings of the study showed weak risk identification,
a higher supplier risk, a weak implementation of supply chain risk management, and a
number of barriers in adopting supply chain risk management. Factors like; supplier
geographical distance, inadequate technology, poor communication across a supply chain,
and lack of supply chain management knowledge stated as frequently occurring barriers. The
paper recommends the Agency to adopt a better risk identification technique since risk
identification is a key and first step in implementing supply chain risk management.
Moreover a much better work should be done in handling supplier’s risk since it is found to
be the primary risk factor in the pharmaceutical supply chain of the Agency, barriers in
adopting a better supply chain risk management like supplier geographical distance can be
addressed by making use of better communication technologies as well as building the
capacity of local pharmaceutical manufacturers.
Description
Keywords
Disruption, risk, supply chain risk management