Nordic Life Science 1
THE NORDICS COMMENTARY In December last year, Swe
den’s National Board of Health and Welfare and the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency concluded that the country’s pharmaceutical stockpiles are insufficient to cope with a crisis or war. That is a serious conclusion. Their report outlines 130 measures to address this, 40 of which are considered to be high priority. But the key question is: how will the stockpiling work in practice? A S A COMPANY with more than a hundred years of experience in pharmaceutical warehousing and distribution in Sweden and Finland, we know how fragile the system can be. Supply chains are complex, and it takes more than good intentions to keep them functioning, especially under pressure. One solution we’ve long advocated for is the creation of rotating emergency stockpiles. This is a way to bring together two things that are often seen as opposites: sustainability and availability. By rotating medicines between warehouses, pharmacies, and healthcare providers before expiry, we reduce waste and cost, while ensuring that medicines are in the right place and effective, when they’re truly needed. But even a good idea will fail without structure. To us, the division of responsibility is clear: the state must set the framework and secure financing, but the day-to-day operation needs to be entrusted to those who already handle medicines professionally. We understand how these systems work in practice, and how to build in flexibility, redundancy, and control. That expertise should be present from the start, not added as an afterthought. Otherwise, we risk building parallel systems that can’t work together – and that would be a waste of time and resources. T here are encouraging developments in Sweden. ADL – the multi-stakeholder dialogue forum initiated during the pandemic under the leadership of the Medical Products Agency – has now been made permanent. And earlier this year, a joint preparedness exercise was held, bringing together stakeholders from across the entire value chain. This is exactly the kind of hands-on collaboration we need more of, practical initiatives that show how things actually work under pressure. We also welcome the fact that a national overview of medicine availability is in development. This is a crucial tool. Without clear data on what’s available, where, and in what quantities, it’s difficult to make the right decisions when it matters most. NORDICLIFESCIENCE.ORG | 45