This week the Australian Government announced measures to secure intravenous (IV) fluid products amid a global supply shortage. An RMIT expert comments on supply chain issues around critical healthcare products.

Dr Priyabrata Chowdhury, supply chain expert:

“The current shortages of IV fluid products in Australia have posed significant challenges to the healthcare system.

“To address the issue, various measures have been implemented: a National IV Fluid Response Group with representatives from all states, territories and the Commonwealth has been established; the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has approved several alternative overseas-registered IV fluids; and the government has secured an additional 22 million IV fluid bags for the next six months.

“While these initiatives will address the current immediate supply shortage of IV fluids, they do not fully resolve the underlying problems.

“Future shortages of IV fluids or other critical healthcare products may arise due to supply chain disruptions.

“To address this issue effectively, Australia needs to build a resilient supply chain for critical healthcare products, including IV fluids. Several steps can be taken to achieve this:

1. Enhance domestic production: There has been an ongoing discussion about boosting the domestic production of healthcare products, especially critical ones. The current crisis brings that into the spotlight once again. We need to evaluate our current reliance on imports and then determine the ideal ratio of imports to domestic production. Then, we need to develop our local production capabilities accordingly. This includes not only establishing manufacturing facilities but also ensuring a steady supply of raw materials and the necessary skills and technologies.
2. Strengthen coordination: Improved coordination among multiple stakeholders, including policymakers, healthcare professionals and supply chain experts, is crucial. For example, the current shortage of IV products involves supply chain issues, but are we involving supply chain experts to address this? Identifying the medicines required for Australians is one issue, and ensuring a seamless supply of those medicines is another. For the latter, we need the expertise of supply chain professionals who can help optimise manufacturing capacities, build resilient supply chains and plan for contingencies such as backup plants and suppliers. Therefore, any response team for managing crises or planning future supply of critical healthcare products should include supply chain experts.
3. Proactive substitute planning: The TGA can proactively plan potential substitutes for all critical healthcare products. By preparing in advance, the TGA can expedite its approval process for substitutes whenever there is a shortage of critical healthcare products.”

Dr Priyabrata Chowdhury is a Senior Lecturer of Supply Chain Management at the School of Accounting, Information Systems and Supply Chain (AISSC) at RMIT University. Priyabrata researches contemporary supply chain issues to guide businesses in developing resilient and sustainable supply chains. His research interests include supply chain risk and disruption management, supply chain resilience, supply chain sustainability, and talent management in supply chains.