Saturday, February 27, 2021: The Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance successfully hosted the 6th edition of the Indian Pharmaceutical Forum. This year’s theme Patient Centricity: New Paradigm in Quality Management highlighted the importance of sustaining patient-centricity from long term perspective. The event brought together senior leaders from industry, regulatory agencies, academia and subject experts to facilitate discussion on building excellence in quality management across the pharmaceutical industry worldwide.
Dr. VG Somani, Drug Controller General of India said “COVID-19 pandemic taught us that quality management systems should be able to address the challenges while maintaining strict compliance with the requirements of the safety, efficacy and quality standards. Indian pharmaceutical industry has been proactive to adapt to the situation in regard to production, supply chain etc. while maintaining best practices.”
Mr. Satish Reddy, President, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance said “The Indian pharmaceutical industry has been at the forefront in the fight against the pandemic. IPA’s focus right from the start of pandemic clearly has been on ensuring supply chain continuity, welfare of the employees, providing thought leadership and stimulating recovery and growth of the industry. Despite the pandemic, IPA has been very active in its core function of policy advocacy with high level engagement with the authorities.”
Ms. Samina Hamied, Executive Vice Chairperson, Cipla Ltd, said, “India has started moving up the ladder quickly, be it in response to the pandemic, treatment options, clinical management of patients or vaccines. It is therefore imperative that we maintain our leadership across the value chain. Additionally, for the growth that the pharma sector has seen, quality is non-negotiable. With these constant developments, imbibing global practices is also extremely crucial.”
Mr. Pankaj Patel, Chairman, Cadila Healthcare Ltd, said, “COVID-19 exposed global vulnerabilities of the supply chains in the pharmaceuticals sector making the need for innovation & sustainability pivotal to the growth of the sector. While we adopted digital platforms for all our work, sustaining this transformation will be crucial for the next decade. Digital interventions have the potential to help us innovate and improve market share. Innovation, not just in molecular developments but also in existing systems of manufacturing, training, data analysis & storage and much more are equally essential. A sustainable approach to digital transformation can shape the industry as a key growth provider globally.”
Mr. Dilip Shanghavi, MD, Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd, said “Technology has impacted all parts of pharmaceutical pillars such as research, manufacturing, sales and marketing. This will eventually help improve the quality of performance in each of the business areas. These changes will accelerate the speed at which a product is developed and is made available in markets and entail in reduced costs, benefitting patients. Also, the pandemic brought forth the focus on Tele-consultation making it an important aspect in the treatment of patients. I believe tele-consultation will continue to play a huge role by enabling access to quality treatment especially to patients in smaller cities.”
Mr. Nilesh Gupta, MD, Lupin Ltd, said “Pharmaceutical manufacturing and quality testing is complex in nature due to the multiple processes involved and has not changed over the last 20 years. The processes cannot continue for the next 20 years and hence there is need for through technological and digital advancement. Pharmaceutical industry has recently begun its digital journey. I believe implementation of smart solutions will help make the manufacturing sites work smart. The industry needs to learn from other sectors which will help in redefining the way pharma manufactures and conducts testing.”
Mr. Sudarshan Jain, Secretary General, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance said “COVID-19 has once again reinforced the efforts of the healthcare industry towards a patient-centric approach. This year, the 6th Indian Pharmaceutical Forum provided a platform to facilitate a comprehensive discussion on the everchanging shift in quality management, led by significant voices of the industry.”
The event featured 40+ global experts taking part in 15 engaging sessions on aspects of Patient Centricity in the new paradigm of Quality management. The Forum addressed various aspects that define quality management in the pharmaceutical industry and brought manufacturers and regulators on a common platform to facilitate discussions resulting in meaningful and actionable outcomes. Panellists deliberated on different areas important for delivering high-quality pharmaceutical products such as digitization, artificial intelligence, industry & academia collaboration, and regulatory affairs.
“During the pandemic it was important for the industry to ensure that there is consistent availability of high-quality medicines. We are proud to say that the Indian pharmaceutical industry lived up to its reputation of being consistent and reliable partner in delivering quality medicines” added Mr. Jain
The event concluded with an exclusive panel discussion on the impact of COVID-19 on pharmaceutical industry that brought together the C-Suite of top Indian Pharma such as Cadila Healthcare, Cipla, Dr. Reddy’s, Lupin and Sun Pharma.
About IPA
ndian Pharmaceutical Alliance represents 24 research based national pharmaceutical companies. Collectively, IPA companies account for over 85 per cent of the private sector investment in pharmaceutical research and development. They contribute more than 80 per cent of the country’s exports of drugs and pharmaceuticals and service over 57 per cent of the domestic market.