Nicholas Saraceno, Editor

Driving Business Success Through Sustainability

PC: You just wrapped up a panel discussion on “Uniting on Sustainability: How can we drive collaboration and ground-breaking initiatives to ensure ESG is a top business priority?” With sustainability being such a priority nowadays, what were some the highlights of the presentation?

The panel was actually really refreshing because we moved away from just focusing on sustainability reporting and compliance. Instead, we explored how sustainability has become a business imperative for each of us. We discussed how it's driven operational efficiencies, influenced our supply chain partnerships, and provided earlier access to supplier innovations. What we concluded is that sustainability should be viewed as an investment—not just in the planet, but in the future of our businesses. It’s no longer just about cost-cutting, which has often dominated our thinking. What stood out during the panel was how natural it has become for all of us to see non-sustainable practices as illogical.

The panel discussion on sustainability emphasized shifting the focus from compliance to making sustainability a business imperative. The panelists shared their experiences where sustainability initiatives have driven operational efficiencies, influenced supplier partnerships, and enabled early access to supplier innovation. The key takeaway was viewing sustainability as an investment in both the planet and the future of the business, rather than just a cost-driven concern. This shift in perspective has made sustainability an integral part of operations, to the point where acting unsustainably no longer makes sense.

To get more companies on board, the panel suggested three key strategies: first, providing proof points to show the business benefits of sustainability, transitioning from pledges to tangible results; second, being patient and understanding that sustainability is a long-term goal that requires persistence; and third, embedding sustainability into everyday business processes rather than treating it as a large-scale transformation project.

Looking ahead, the next five to ten years are expected to be marked by unprecedented collaboration between competitors, recognizing that sustainability is a collective challenge. The integration of AI with sustainability efforts is also seen as a major opportunity to innovate and accelerate progress toward net-zero goals.

Gilead, specifically, has made notable strides in sustainability, focusing on product, water, waste, and carbon goals. Their commitment to reducing Scope 1 emissions by 46% ahead of schedule demonstrates the importance of integrating sustainability into business processes.

Finally, AI’s role in sustainability is a key area of interest, particularly in how it can be standardized for the common good, contributing to goals like reducing consumption and waste.

Videos

Joydeep Ganguly, SVP, corporate operations, interim CIO, Gilead Sciences, shares insights on how sustainability has evolved from a compliance requirement to a key business strategy, driving operational efficiencies, innovation, and long-term growth.

LogiPharma Europe 2025: Driving Business Success Through Sustainability

Image Credit: Adobe Stock Images/Kotchakorn.com

Among the older population, polypharmacy—the use of five or more medications—has skyrocketed. The issue lies in the fact that some meds lack any sort of indication, are used in way too high of a dose, or do more harm than good. These are considered “inappropriate.”

As a result, there has been a boost in an interest to begin deprescribing, which is when a patient either stops or decreases medication usage. However, this often varies across different countries, being that healthcare systems, pharma marketing, out-of-pocket costs, and society could play a role. 

 sought to answer the question of, what exactly are older adults’ attitudes toward deprescribing certain medications?

The aforementioned survey study was conducted in 17 primary care environments that spanned 14 countries from May 2022 to December 2023. The goal for each country was to sign up 100 patients, with requirements that patients be 65 years of age or older and are taking five or more different medications on a regular basis.

This survey featured a questionnaire centered around patients’ sociodemographic qualities; attitudes toward deprescribing; and confidence in their general practitioner (GP), along with a couple of questions from the Revised Patients’ Attitudes Towards Deprescribing (rPATD) Questionnaire.

Overall, after needing to meeting specific qualifications—such as providing consent and filling out more than five questions—1,340 older adults participated, with 44% noting that they would want to to deprescribe one or more of their medications, but these percentages varied depending on the country.

The general trend was that those who cited both higher medication satisfaction and trust in their GP had lower odds of wanting to deprescribe certain meds. Further, 82% of patients were satisfied with their medications, but out of the total sample size, participants were reportedly taking an average of seven meds.

The three most reported medications that patients would like to have deprescribed were diuretics (111 of 1,002 medications [11%]), lipid-modifying agents (109 of 1,002 medications [11%]), and agents that act on the renin-angiotensin system (83 of 1,002 medications [8%]).

From a geographic perspective, Poland and Italy had the highest proportion of patients who would like to deprescribe, while Bulgaria and Croatia had the lowest.

Overall, the study investigators concluded that, “the results from this study are informative for the development of future deprescribing interventions. The observed variation in patients wanting to deprescribe across countries demonstrates that patient-facing intervention materials might be more impactful when adjusted to local context. When designing future deprescribing interventions, the types of medications patients would like to deprescribe should be considered and weighted in conjunction with the prescriber’s expertise and guidelines. Medications whose benefits are challenging to estimate in older adults, such as preventative agents (eg, lipid-modifying agents) and psychotropics, were often named for deprescribing.

“Educational material for patients and decision aids may support shared decision-making, especially when the benefits of certain treatments are uncertain. The association between patients’ satisfaction with medications, trust in their GP, and interest in deprescribing specific medications highlights the importance of patient-practitioner communication in deprescribing. Future research should aim at better understanding the relationship between trust and patient-practitioner relationships and how this influences the implementation of deprescribing decisions in real-world clinical settings.”

1. Vidonscky Lüthold R, Jungo KT, Weir KR, et al. Older Adults’ Attitudes Toward Deprescribing in 14 Countries. 

Articles

A survey study takes a closer look into which medications patients would like to have deprescribed, along with the reasons and factors influencing that decision.

Reducing Polypharmacy in Older Adults

The Impact of Pharma Tariffs on Drug Shortages

, Jody Hatcher, CEO of Morris & Dickson and chair of HDA’s board of directors

 outlines his vision for the future of the organization and the key priorities he hopes to drive during his tenure. He expresses a strong sense of privilege and responsibility in succeeding Kirk Kaminsky and looks forward to collaborating closely with Debbie Weitzman of Cardinal Health to strengthen connections across the pharmaceutical supply chain.

Hatcher emphasizes the often-overlooked value that distributors bring to the healthcare ecosystem. Representing more than 1,200 manufacturers and serving around 330,000 pharmacies and care providers, he describes distributors as being part of an "irreplaceable network" that plays a vital, behind-the-scenes role in ensuring the availability of medications and healthcare products across the country.

He outlines three main priorities for his leadership. First, he aims to enhance engagement within the distribution community—bringing together pharmacies, manufacturers, and distributors around their shared mission. Second, he highlights the critical importance of implementing the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) across the supply chain. With an extension recently granted, Hatcher underscores the need to meet the updated deadlines to maintain the reliability and integrity of the distribution network.

Lastly, he stresses the importance of storytelling—articulating the value and sophistication of the distribution sector to external audiences. He notes that while distributors are often discussed in various contexts, it's essential to clearly communicate their indispensable role in maintaining a secure and efficient healthcare supply chain.

Overall, Hatcher's vision centers on strengthening collaboration, ensuring compliance, and raising awareness of the distribution sector’s critical contributions.

Hatcher also comments on his day-to-day workflow at Morris & Dickson, including how it supports the efficiency and reliability of the company’s operations; steps that should be taken to ensure DSCSA compliance; types of implications that the potential 25% tariffs on pharmaceuticals can cause; and much more.

With potential 25% tariffs on pharmaceuticals looming, what type of implications can they cause, as far as manufacturers reshoring their production services are concerned?

We’re paying a lot of attention to what the current administration is looking at, in terms of policies that affect healthcare. In particular, the tariffs is one that we are keeping a close eye on. We want to support what the president is trying to do, for obvious reasons, but we also want to make sure that there are no unintended consequences associated with any kind of tariffs. What we've done, Nico, is we've respectfully urged a little bit of caution around this for really obvious reasons. Onshoring product from a manufacturer standpoint is not something that's done very quickly and easily, and so what we fear and what we worry about is any immediate impact. What we’ve also asked for is waivers for pharmaceuticals, and we’ve supported that position.

I think PhRMA has done the same, but our fear is that it contributes further to the already troubling drug shortages that we're all confronted with, dealing with, and are trying to mitigate for our customers. We're very supportive of trying to ensure as much manufacturing as possible, but it's going to take years to get those facilities underway, those facilities ready to go. The other issue is API (active pharmaceutical ingredient). The vast majority of API is not domestically sourced, and so that also has an impact. If that API isn't sourced in the US, it'll likely be subject to tariffs as well.

We really need to make sure that we're enlightening everyone about the complexity associated with the pharmaceutical supply chain. We want to avoid disruption. We want to avoid further shortages, and we want to make sure that we're supportive of our trade partners along the way. I think everyone's looking at this with an eye of caution. From our vantage point, economically, distributors—as I mentioned at the onset—play a vital role in the movement of products. We're not replaceable. We're not easily replaceable, but at the same time, we also have a very low margin profile for this business—less than 1%—and so the other concern that we have collectively is that the economic impact on tariffs, potentially on distributors and on our customers, could be very burdening and difficult.

This is something we're going to continue to watch very closely. We've engaged with the administration. We're going to be spending time in April on Capitol Hill, and our hope is that we can really have a constructive dialog about some of the caution points associated with the tariffs.

In the final part of his video interview with Pharma Commerce Editor Nicholas Saraceno, Jody Hatcher, CEO of Morris & Dickson and chair of HDA’s board of directors, outlines the implications that potential 25% tariffs on pharmaceuticals could have, as far as manufacturers reshoring their production services are concerned.

Thermo Fisher Scientific has officially opened its Advanced Therapies Collaboration Center (ATxCC) in Carlsbad, CA.

 The plant is intended to speed up both the development and commercialization of cell therapies, in an effort to both grow the life sciences space and improve patient outcomes.

As a result of the new facility, developers in the cell therapy space—including in biotech and biopharma—will be able to use Thermo Fisher’s product and tech experience to help design end-to-end manufacturing workflows.

"Our new Advanced Therapies Collaboration Center represents a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to deliver solutions that address critical challenges in cell therapy development,” said Betty Woo, Thermo Fisher’s vice president of cell, gene, and advanced therapies. “By enabling access to our expertise and broad range of instrumentation, reagents, lab equipment and analytical solutions, we aim to help our customers overcome manufacturing hurdles and accelerate their path to commercialization. By fostering collaboration and innovation, the center is poised to play a pivotal role in helping to advance cell therapies, ultimately improving patient lives."

Assistance will come in various forms, including resources and support in transitioning to current good manufacturing practices (cGMP) manufacturing.

Access to innovative tech, including lab equipment, which can help streamline manufacturing.

Protocol and process optimization support, provided by specialized scientists and engineers

Continuing support as therapeutic programs continue to progress

In other Thermo Fisher news, the company is also opening an “expanded footprint” of the aforementioned Carlsbad ATxCC in Philadelphia later this year, which joins current collaboration centers located in Singapore and Korea.

1. Thermo Fisher Scientific Opens Advanced Therapies Collaboration Center in Greater San Diego to Help Accelerate Cell Therapy Development. April 17, 2025. Accessed April 21, 2025. 

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250417009744/en/Thermo-Fisher-Scientific-Opens-Advanced-Therapies-Collaboration-Center-in-Greater-San-Diego-to-Help-Accelerate-Cell-Therapy-Development

The Carlsbad plant is expected to accelerate both the development and commercialization of cell therapies. 