The first panel discussion at FDD Conclave 2021 witnessed FR&D leaders and experts reflect and discuss on the experiences and learnings for pharma scientists since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The eminent panenlists for this session were Dr Alagumurugan Alagarswamy, VP & Head – R&D, Maiva Pharma (Moderator); Dr Rakesh Kumar Bhasin, VP and Head R&D (Formulations), Biocon Pharma; Dr Sumedha Nadkar, Site Head and Sr Director, Perrigo Labs and Dr Pirthi Pal Singh, VP, Tirupati Group.
The panelists discussed how the pandemic, one of the biggest health crises of this century, has also been instrumental in furthering progress in formulation development and drug delivery.
They looked at various aspects like the challenges faced by the R&D community due to the pandemic such as working in very restricted conditions, supply chain disruptions, the urgency to find drugs and vaccines to battle the pandemic while ensuring that the focus on the coronavirus did not affect the search for medicines to deal with other ailments. The panelists also discussed how clinical trials were adversely affected by the pandemic as they had to deal with escalating costs, challenges in recruitment of participants, etc.
For instance, experts informed that the majority of R&D leaders have been spending an average of 40 to 50 per cent of their time in crisis management. But at the same time, it was a period of great learning as well since the sector learnt newer methods to deal with challenges and devised newer approaches to make their processes and operations more efficient.
It also allowed the industry’s professionals to expand their knowledge base and optimise R&D outcomes. For instance, as scientists and researchers were exploring different drugs for efficacy against COVID-19, it was found that drug formulation and delivery strategies like controlled release and targeted delivery could expand the use of such repurposed drugs and mitigate their side effects.
The discussion was very wide ranging and the experts addressed several vital topics such as recent scientific advancements spurred by the pandemic, the growing use of technology and digitalisation to enhance efficiency and efficacy of pharma operations, especially in pharma R&D, the growth potential for India Pharma Inc, the impact, growth potential and challenges in herbal formulations and nutraceuticals, etc.
Thus the session was very insightful and had several takeways which will be pivotal for the sector’s growth trajectory in future.