E-DRUG: Course for procurement planning for all pharmaceutical supplies(6)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
dear E-druggers,
IDA Solutions highly appreciates the comments and analysis that Boniface presented making use of our courses as example of supply chain management courses.
For the sake of clarity and bringing some issues to such an interesting debate, we would like to underline the following:
The range of courses being provided through IDA Solutions is not just coincidental with donors support. In fact, IDA was the Organiser of the concept / course on Supply Chain Management with the support of various partners (among them the WHO). The Managing Drug Supply course has since been on-going yearly for over eleven years. It has been a commitment from the organization that has brought us to invest in the translation of the same curriculum into French in other to give the opportunity to a broader audience to benefit from it. The 4th edition of the French course will take place from September the 11th till the 23rd this year.
Over the years, IDA has positioned itself in the field of training and capacity building in SCM, working to meet the needs of the sector. This explains why in the last years we have, with the confidence and support of some donors, engaged in the development of new curricula to help fill gaps wherever we can, always in a collaborative spirit, working with others that have proven experience in the field of supply chain, be they Academics, independent Experts (from developed and developing countries), or UN agencies like WHO, UNDP, UNICEF, etc.
IDA Solutions would like all our colleagues on e-drugs to know that:
- We highly appreciate the views and fruitful discussions on the issue raised by Mr Boniface and where IDA Solutions was explicitly mentioned.
- As an organization which mission and aim is and has always been to work for the improvement of the well-being of the populations where health care is still a matter of exclusivity for a few, we value any comments and critics and will have internal discussions on every new challenge on our way to meet our ultimate goal for those in need.
Could I ask IDA Solutions if there is a training course available for a holistic approach to such programmes, like M&E for ARVs that
can address procurement of all medicines?
We are trying to develop further support of this concept. We have already entered in discussion with major donors and partner technical agencies. We welcome inputs from all those who feel a special interest in this subject and would like to invite them to add their effort to ours in order to find the best timely alternative to fill this gap. In our approach on training in SCM, we put a special emphasis on partnership with others and on not trying to reinvent the wheel over and over. For instance in a desk study done by IDA Solutions for the WHO/AMDS last year on harmonization, we clearly indicated that use of existing tools is the preference, as well as our expectations of the role of UN partners to support development of these common tools in the interest of the 3 Ones. We, IDA Solutions, will do everything possible to support a swift development of such tools.
After all, we must not forget that there are already universities that offer long distance courses in DSM but most are long courses. It is worth acknowledging that there is also a place for shorter courses and refresher courses in any training.
In the meantime and above all, may we not forget that there are still billions without regular access to the most essential medicines they need, and unfortunately millions die because it. The challenge for policy makers and supply chain Managers is as real as big. We can all do something to help improve this situation; we are all invited to be part of the solution.
regards,
François
Jean François Saint-Sauveur MD, MPH
Training Coordinator
IDA Solutions
Bisonspoor 6003
3605 LV Maarssen, The Netherlands
Phone: +31 346 581 770
Direct : +31 346 581 774
Fax : +31 346 581 789
Email: fsaintsauveur@idasolutions.org
Website: www.idasolutions.org