Express Pharma (May 15-31, 2017)
EXPANDING ACCESS
Express Pharma has always taken a keen interest in India’s progress in the public welfare. Ascertaining that commitment to public health, this story covered a crucial issue — Access to health.
It examined an often overlooked aspect, the efficacy of pharma companies’ access strategies to identify a health need and address gaps in current healthcare systems.
It highlighted the challenges and recommended that the industry will have to evolve its access strategies, specifically for India, and in some cases, state by state.
The measures in the article , if implemented, will enable better access to medicines and also help pharma companies in their endeavour to tap rural markets.
Interviews with industry leaders and game changers
In the first interview, GSK’s A Vaidheesh talks about increasing access to medicines through meaningful collaborations and digital technologies. The second one features the founder of a promising start-up, Locus Technologies which is transforming the logistics space. The third interview with KPMG is on the changing business dynamics of the pharma industry in increasingly volatile conditions.
Express Pharma (February 1-15, 2017)
Rise of Pharma Hubs
Express Pharma has been chronicling the happenings of the pharma industry for over two decades. This story trained its focus on how Andhra Pradesh is rebuilding itself as a pharma hub post-bifurcation.
Visakhapatnam will be the nucleus of this new hub, given its advantages of being a flourishing port. It also examined the opportunities that the state offers to entice major pharma players to the state.
Challenges and bottlenecks that could hinder the rise of the state as a pharma was also analysed to find solutions. The pharma industry received a thorough understanding of this burgeoning market and hopefully will be able to leverage it to expedite their progress.
Express Pharma (February 16-28, 2017)
Company Watch
Express Pharma the pharma industry and its progress very closely. So obviously,
when Glenmark Pharma, a leading pharma major unveiled its strategic blueprint for the next decade, it couldn’t have gone uncovered.
Bouyed up with promising research results, Glenmark seems to be revving up for some major out-licensing deals. Do they finally have a blockbuster waiting in the wings? Will their bets pay off? These were some of the major pegs covered in the story.
It also covered their growth strategy in detail and traced its progress in the 16 years since its IPO in 2000. It also featured the market’s predictions on Glenmark’s blueprint and the possibility of its success.
The three interviews in this page deal with varied issue. The first one is on the ensuring data security through encryption. The second interview with Cipla’s Chief Medical officer is on the growing incidence of respiratory disease and tackling it with a multi-pronged strategy involving patient compliance, monitoring and raising awareness. The third interview is on Wockhardt Pharma’s endeavour to tackle AMR with novel antibacterial therapies.
Express Pharma (March 1-15, 2017)
NEW TECHNOLOGIES
This article analysed electroceuticals, a new branch of medicine, which is generating considerable interest globally among medical researchers and entrepreneurs like GSK. It explored the potential of electroceuticals to treat a wide range of illnesses by altering electrical signals diffused by nerves throughout the body. The article also covered the research done on this field and reflected whether it could replace pharmaceuticals completely some day?
The story is an example of how Express Pharma captures the pulse of the lifesciences industry. It is always on the look out for technological and therapeutic innovations and disruptions to serve the sector and keep it abreast of the latest and future trends in the industry.
Express Pharma (April 1-15, 2017)
Disease management strategies
The story covered the Union Health Ministry’s efforts to eliminate and control congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) by 2020. It particularly focussed on a concerted, nation-wide measles-rubella vaccination (MR-VAC) campaign for children aged between nine months and 15 years. It also highlighted that the government needed to quash fears about safety of the rubella vaccine and establish its efficacy to achieve its goal of eliminating the disease by 2020.
The objective of the article was to review a public health campaign and its effectiveness in dealing with a disease which afflicts many children in the country.
This page features three more interviews which cover various other aspects of the industry. The first interview with Dr GN Singh and Dr V Kalaiselvan, reflected on the progress of PvPI in India and its activities to strengthen pharmacovigilance in the country. The second interview with Merck, covered the company’s plans for India in the next 18 months and its intent to reach out customers directly through their consumer healthcare and bio-pharma segments. The interview with
Dr B Suresh from PCI reflected the state of pharmacy education in the country and the steps initiated by PCI to bridge the industry-academia gap.
Express Pharma (June 1-15, 2017)
Push for genericisation
Reviews, predictions and feedback on the policies of the government and laws of the regulatory bodies are frequently covered in Express Pharma. Then how could it have not covered the government’s intent to push genericisation?
A fiery debate on ‘Genericisation: Panacea or Pandora’s Box?’ ensued at the third edition of Vantage Point, Express Pharma‘s platform to discuss and deliberate on Indian pharma sector’s most pressing and controversial topics, covered this issue in detail with the industry experts.
An eminent panel deliberated on the implications and possibilities of the Centre’s push towards genericisation of pharma brands, in a very interesting and insightful session.
Express Pharma (June 16 – 30, 2017)
Encouraging AYUSH
The patient-centric approach of India’s traditional systems of medicines has led the government to look at AYUSH as a panacea to India’s public health challenges. This story covered the several measures have been initiated by the government to drive access to affordable, reliable and easily accessible medical facilities to the masses through AYUSH. It also reflected on the ways and means to promote and popularise alternative systems of medicine.
It also covers examining the several factors hindering the growth of AYUSH and preventing its widespread acceptance, the story reveals how building trust in the traditional medicine systems through validated data and irrefutable evidence has emerged as an urgent need to leverage the true potential of these systems.
Exclusive articles from industry experts
In this retrospective issue, we bring to you some of the articles shared by domain experts on various pertinent issues of the industry. Three experts from Khaitan and Co share their views on the FDC ban in the first article of this page. The second one is from a representative of MSF Access Campaign who strongly supports India’s strategy of providing affordable generics to the world. The third one reflected on the need for a stringent regulatory authority to procure anti-TB medicines.
Express Pharma (July 1-15, 2017)
Formulation development
Experts predict an increase in formulation R&D spend, as players try to differentiate themselves by investing heavily in R&D efforts and the development of new drugs. Companies are looking at tapping new patient segments, creating branding strategies around innovative drug delivery approaches and meeting evolving regulations. They have realised the need for executable strategies and leading-edge technologies.
Therefore, in an endeavour to encourage research and innovation in the rapidly evolving field of formulation development and drug delivery, Express Pharma hosted the inaugural edition of FDD Conclave in Hyderabad. It saw attendance from over 100 leading scientists and R&D heads of pharma companies. This issue featured exclusive coverage of the event.
Express Pharma (July 16-31, 2017)
Progress of PvPI
In observance of Pharmacovigilance Day, the story examined the progress of the PvPI programme so far.
It empahsised on the growing role of PvPI in India and pointed out that though PV is well practiced in developed countries, multinational pharma companies operating in India have realised that they too need better understanding in this arena.
It also highlighted that both the industry as well as regulatory bodies are working towards instrumenting a system which will work effectively. It reviewed the steps taken to strengthen pharmacovigilance in the country as well.
Thus, Express Pharma acts as a watchdog of the industry with such stories.
Intellectual property and patents are very crucial topics in the pharma industry. The first two articles on this page address this issue, with two renowned IP experts, Ashish Prasad and Dr Gopakumar Nair, sharing their views. Both deal with encouraging innovation and creation of IP. The first deals with evolving an effective IPR policy while the second one gives insights on how effective IP systems can create a conducive environment to attract investments. The third article on this page deals with how the pharma industry can drive innovation beyond core areas to minimise environmental impact. Thus, we do not only cover issues which impact the pharma industry but also looks at how the sector impacts our world.
Express Pharma (August 1-15, 2017)
CELEBRATING 70 years of Independence
Express Pharma, in its Independence Special issues, chronicled the role of the pharma sector, which evolved from being an insignificant non-entity during the time we gained our independence to the present day power house that produces and supplies high quality generic drugs to markets across the world, in driving the progress of the nation.
It showcased the struggle and triumphs which led to India’s rise as the ‘Pharmacy of the world.’ It acknowledged people, companies and institutions that have been part of India’s journey throughout its existence as an independent nation through profiles, photo features and guest articles.
Express Pharma (Aug 16-31, 2017)
Making Sense of Serialisation
As serialisation mandates are getting adopted in various countries, this article revealed how important it is to increase tracebility in pharma and enhance the quality and safety of drugs. It revealed that the process of marking products with unique identifiers, is already a reality in most countries for a variety of products, from FMCG to toys to medicines.
It also pointed out that though serialisation has been successfully implemented in many other sectors, pharma serialisation has turned out to be more complicated. It concluded that all stakeholders will need to work with, rather against, each other, to set common standards and achieve the common goal of increased patient safety through more secure pharma supply chains.
This page features a very diverse mix of articles. The first one is a very strongly worded article from Bharathi Ghanashyam of Journalists against TB, who talks about the story of MDR – TB control in India, which seems to be stuck at the foreword and asks when does it move forward. The other article in this page is from ACG’s CEO, Ajit Singh who traced the progress of the pharma industry over the past seven decades. The third one is a very interesting piece on blending traditional medicine and modern science to develop a holistic approach for cardiovascular healthcare. Thus, the readers of Express Pharma are spoilt for choice in terms of information and content.
Express Pharma (September 1-15, 2017)
Enhancing pharma education
This story highlighted the current state of pharma education and traced the evolution of pharma education. Industry experts share their insights on the way forward to revamp the pharma education system within the country. A multi-pronged strategy involving three domains of action: quality assurance, academic and institutional capacity building and more emphasis on experiential education and competency building was also discussed.
Industry veterans also shared their views on the upcoming trends in pharmacy education. The article highlighted the urgent need to strengthen industry-academia collaborations in terms of education, training and research, through continuous interaction with the pharma industry leaders and involving them in the framing of the pharmacy curriculum.
Express Pharma (September 16-30, 2017)
Make in India review
As India observed the third anniversary of the ‘Make in India’ initiative, Express Pharma reviewed its achievements and shortcomings within the pharma sector. It reflected on the vision of the initiative to raise the manufacturing sector’s contribution to the GDP. However, it also disclosed India’s disproportionate dependency on Chinese APIs which could seriously derail the endeavour’s progress.
The article recommended the industry to tap the true potential of pharma PSUs to rev up API production. The article drew attention towards the need for significant investment and efforts to make PSUs self-sustainable and profitable. Thus, it is an example of how Express Pharma periodically reviews policies of the government.
A forum for key opinion leaders
Express Pharma has always been the vehicle for the industry to convey its views and insights on several topical issues. For instance, the first one is a post-budget analysis on the allocation for the pharma sector. The next one is on the GST roll out. Though many were optimistic that it would prevent the cascading effect of taxes, most of them had expressed concern on its effective implementation. A very valid one, considering that it does seem to have adversely effected the sector’s growth.
Express Pharma (October 1-15, 2017)
A major need
A report released by the Ministry of Statistics reveals that the number of citizens over the age of 60 jumped 35.5 per cent — from 7.6 crores in 2001 to 10.3 crores in 2011. Though many pharma companies are operating in the global geriatric medicines market for older group of population, there is still a void when it comes to providing specific treatment options suitable for geriatrics.
In this issue Express Pharma focussed on the unique social, economic, and clinical challenges of geriatric care in India and the solutions to tackle them. It focussed on tackling their medication needs for complex health issues require special attention to safeguard their golden years and offer them more independence and mobility. Thus, it attempted to identify and fulfil a growing need in the country, which could become a huge problem, if left untackled.
Express Pharma (October 16-31, 2017)
Propelling growth
This article highlighted a growth opportunity for the pharma packaging equipment market with the global emphasis on the implementation of traceability solutions to reduce counterfeiting of pharma products. Serialisation mandates in many countries in turn have created opportunities as well as challenges for the pharma packaging industry.
This article analysed how pharma packaging equipment manufacturers are upping the game to help the packaging sector.
This story emphasised why it is essential for the players in this industry to spot opportunities and take timely steps to leverage them effectively to stay at the top of the game.
We bring you three more instances of how Express Pharma acts as a forum for the industry to share their observations. The first one on this page covered the debate over gelatin capsules vs plant-based capsules. The next one was a special features where pharma experts expressed their respect and gratitude towards their teachers. The last one discussed the impact that extended tax incentives to industries in the North Eastern and Himalayan states till March 2027 albeit as a refund. Thus, we come to an end of this compilation. We assure our readers that we will continue to offer timely, relevant and informative content for our readers and subscribers.
Express Pharma (November 1-15, 2017)
The tech effect
Digital technology plays a key role in transforming a business enterprise and an industry at large. The pharma sector is no exception. Every segment of the pharma sector has been touched by technology and pharma logistics too is undergoing a metamorphosis, fuelled by digital technology. This article showcases various pharma logistic companies’ strategies to leverage digital technology in their business.
Promising start-ups such as Locus, PharmaRack, 4TiGO, etc., share their vision to user better efficiencies in the logistics sector through technology and their efforts in this direction. The article also highlights the significance of digital technology in enhancing the supply chain within the pharma sector and examines future trends.future.
Express Pharma (November 16-30, 2017)
Vigilance for quality
Quality Assurance (QA) in pharma has been discussed and deliberated several times within the industry. Express Pharma has been a part of this debate for a very long time. We have brought to light many loopholes within the sector and presented many strategies to overcome challenges. This article reiterated the need for QA in pharma and pharma-covigilance’s role in ensuring it.
Moreover, the article gives an update on the measures taken by the government and the private sector to put an effective QA system in place for India. Finally, it urged the industry to look at measures that need to be taken to strengthen QA in Indian pharma. We are constantly vigilant about the needs of the pharma industry.