The availability of vaccines and antiviral drugs to the general public depends on the reliability of supply chains. These top-down chains usually include several links — for example, in the United States, antiviral drugs make their way through manufacturers, distributors, and local healthcare facilities before reaching the customers (Koonin & Patel, 2018). If problems occur in one stage, the whole distribution process gets compromised. For instance, vaccines or drugs might be produced, but the public might be unable to access them due to procurement delays (De Boeck et al., 2020). Additionally, the procured drugs or vaccines may become unusable due to the incorrect storage procedure (De Boeck et al., 2020). Finally, an issue may arise when vaccines and drugs are procured in necessary amounts and stored correctly but are not distributed to the public (Koonin & Patel, 2018). Regardless of the reasons, in all of these scenarios, the population’s access to medications becomes impaired.
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Once the cause of the supply and distribution problem is established, it becomes possible to offer a solution. Procurement delays that usually happen in low and middle-income countries can be resolved with the assistance of international organizations such as WHO and UNICEF (De Boeck et al., 2020). Alternatively, national governments can negotiate vaccine procurement directly from the manufacturers. Incorrect storage can be alleviated by using alternative storage devices which do not require stable electric power (De Boeck et al., 2020). Finally, government bodies and healthcare providers should inform the public why it is vital to access care and where it can be done conveniently (Koonin & Patel, 2018). More drastic measures such as drug rationing and fractional dosing during shortages should be implemented only as a last resort when other actions cannot yield results in a reasonable time.
De Boeck, K., Decouttere, C., & Vandaele, N. (2020). Vaccine distribution chains in low-and middle-income countries: A literature review. Omega, 97, 102097. Web.
Koonin, L. M., & Patel, A. (2018). Timely antiviral administration during an influenza pandemic: key components. American Journal of Public Health, 108(S3), S215-S220. Web.