How Roche are transforming the patient experience

Here onsite in Lyon, with a helping hand from George Beres and Lana Burrell, from Roche, we kicked off LogiPharma 2023 with a bang. In their keynote presentation entitled ‘Redesigning your supply chain: How to boost patient and customer centricity: a case study from Roche’, George and Lana discussed key insights from Roche’s ‘Voice of the Customer' research project, the importance of patient centricity, and the impact that at home delivery can have on the quality of the lives of patients.

George opened the keynote by discussing an important case study, of a patient who suffers from Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), which has led to them being in a wheelchair, and in need of 24/7 care.

George points out that what we all take for granted – walking to the shops, even leaving the house, can be a great undertaking for some. The case study was a great way to ground the importance of the work that is being done to transform the pharmaceutical supply chain into one that places the end user at the highest level of importance. Older models of drug delivery to clinics and hospitals just aren’t enough for some, which highlights the importance of patient-centricity now, and in the future.

George also briefly spoke on Roche’s E2E supply chain operating model, which has evolved over the past few years, as they have focussed on patient centricity. There are three areas of importance in the model, which are as follows:

• The Patient – Eligible patients get the treatment when and where they need it.
• The Customer – Improved customer experience through differentiated services.
• Roche – Competitive advantage through innovative supply chain solutions.

Next, Lana took the stage to discuss the decision process that confirmed for Roche that they would shift to a new CDMO model. The move was undoubtedly a great undertaking, and Lana took us through the stages of their CDMO E2E transformation.

Finally, Lana took us through how the CDMO model drives value for patients, through four levers. The first one was titled ‘End-to-End’. For Roche, ‘end-to-end’ means providing fewer handoffs, and an increase in knowledge which will result in medication being delivered to patients faster. The next lever is all about being lean and agile, which involves having a flexible talent flow that can identify and support priority work areas, all whilst optimising costs.

The third lever is having a dedicated value driver, which includes strengthening digital, real-time decisions using automation and continuous improvement. Finally, enabling strategic partnerships with a focus on better understanding patient needs and increasing efficiencies is the final lever that has been paramount to the success of Roche’s new CDMO model.

George and Lana’s amazing keynote presentation was the perfect way to kick off LogiPharma 2023, as at the heart of it, was the case study of a patient with a chronic disease for whom leaving the house to receive medication is extremely challenging. Realising the importance of evolving the supply chain towards patient-centricity in the future for so many around the world is a great sentiment to drive the great panels, discussions and collaborative opportunities that will be possible over the next few days here in Lyon, at LogiPharma 2023.

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