Global vaccine distribution best practice

Now that the world is presented with the daunting task of mass vaccination against Covid-19, the pharmaceutical industry faces a complex distribution challenge. BSI can help, through our expertise and best practice standards frameworks in supply chain and distribution risk management.

Drug and vaccine distribution visibility and risk management have long raised significant issues for the pharmaceutical sector. With global vaccination for Covid-19, the challenges are greater than ever. Vast demand for vaccines worldwide, coupled with constraints in qualified transportation availability and capacity, is placing intense ongoing pressure on the industry and its supply chain professionals.

A consistently high standard of management is required to address distribution risks, including:

• Distribution delay - we need to act quickly to reach seven billion people as soon as possible
• Vaccine ineffectiveness - vaccines must be maintained at specific cold chain temperatures, from the point of manufacture to the point of the needle
• Insufficient qualified logistical capacity - from international air and ocean cargo to last mile, in-country transport provision
• Weak controls and assessment processes - due to the reduction of in-person auditing
• Uneven distribution - global access to vaccines is inequitable
• Crime - from theft, diversion or counterfeiting of vaccines
• Increased costs and inefficiencies due to new distribution network complexities
• Brand damage - end patient trust

• Supply chain professionals must tackle a range of issues to ensure resilient distribution channels that will deliver the vaccines quickly and safely:
• Quality and compliance - from cold chain management, GXP compliance, and regulatory approval to scalability and speed to market
• Safety and product integrity - from maintaining vaccine visibility and vaccine traceability to training frontline staff, dealing with hazardous waste, and ensuring trust at the last mile
• Product and supply chain security - from identifying reliable and qualified distribution partners and controlling the chain of custody to combatting theft and counterfeit products
• Cybersecurity ­- from breaches of patient data and disclosure of vaccine route information to lack of third-party security controls and cyber attacks on vial or packaging data