More than 2.39 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered across the globe as of June 2021, according to reports based on government data from sources. An aggressive vaccine drive and a cold chain logistics support is our only hope to finally put an end to the Coronavirus pandemic that has taken more than 2.8 million lives across the globe. All countries across the world are focusing on vaccinating their entire population as soon as possible as many countries are now facing a second or a third COVID-19 wave.
Given that India is the second-most populous country in the world with a population of 1.2 billion people, it is a major challenge for the government to vaccinate 1.2 billion people timely, especially after the tragic second wave. While vaccine shortage remains a huge concern for India, challenges in India’s cold chain logistics remains another reason to worry. Several states of the country have been reporting vaccine wastage.
To prevent any kind of vaccine wastage, India needs to have its cold chain logistics network in place to ensure there is negative wastage of vaccines. Both COVAXIN and COVISHIELD, which are majorly being administered in India, need a cold-storage facility and cannot be exposed to heat or be frozen. Department of Biotechnology Secretary Renu Swarup said that Indian vaccines need to be stored at 2-8 degrees Celsius.
It is imperative to ensure proper temperature management of these vaccines, especially during transportation. Here’s where cold chain logistics play a major role. Apart from procuring cold chain equipment, the Indian pharma industry needs to have efficient cold chain logistics to ensure that no lives are lost because of poor management of the vaccines.
Several medical experts from across the globe have been emphasizing how maintaining a robust cold-chain system utmost importance as vaccines are sensitive products.
“If a person is vaccinated and the temperature has breached its intolerance limit or lost its potency, the efficiency rate is hampered.”
– W.H.O.
The World Health Organization (WHO) mandate has said that the temperature for any COVID-19 vaccine cannot be lower than 2 degrees or above 8 degrees. It is more important than ever for Indian pharmaceutical companies to have efficient cold chain logistics and supply chain network as well as infrastructure to ensure a proper cold chain system.
Need of the hour: Cold Chain Logistics
- A cold chain logistics and supply chain that monitors vaccines throughout the entire process—right from the transit to when it is dosed.
- Tracking vaccines as they move across the supply chain while maintaining all protocols.
- Creating and implementing an IT-enabled mechanism at all vaccine manufacturing units.
- Using temperature data logger/IoT devices to monitor temperature at storage and at time of transportation.
Pharmaceuticals are exported and imported across the globe on a large scale. Unlike the other logistics services and supply chain industries, pharmaceutical chain logistics is complex and huge. It is not a regular supply chain because it has a major role to play in saving lives. With the rise in demand for COVID-19 medication and vaccines, it is very important to have a transparent and effective cold chain with proper temperature-controlled transportation and other required equipment to ensure that no lives are lost due to a glitch in the supply chain.
AAJ Supply Chain Management
