75% of Hospitals Face Medication Shortages - Germfree and On Demand Pharmaceuticals Partner to Deliver Localized Production Solutions

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Dec 03, 2024, 10:00 ET

Partners working to expand program after successful six-month pilot study at North Mississippi Medical Center, which enabled production of 12,000 doses of multiple drugs in limited supply

ORMOND BEACH, Fla., Dec. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Germfree Laboratories, On Demand Pharmaceuticals (ODP), and North Mississippi Medical Center-Tupelo (NMMC) have teamed up to address the global drug shortage crisis with a groundbreaking point-of-care medicine production solution. The expanding partnership aims to bring agile production of essential medicines closer to the point of care across the country and globally, ensuring a reliable supply of life-saving drugs.

Pharmacy staff monitoring pharmacy operations digitally

With more than 75% of U.S. hospitals facing medication shortages and millions of people in low- and middle-income countries lacking access to critical medicines, the need for localized, flexible production is urgent. By combining Germfree's mobile cleanroom technology with ODP's Pharmacy on Demand platform, this collaboration empowers healthcare providers to produce high-quality medications on site, reducing reliance on fragile global supply chains.

The partnership builds on a six-month pilot study that leveraged ODP's platform technology and Germfree's mobile cleanroom capability to produce syringes of common shortage medicines at NMMC, including lidocaine, rocuronium, and potassium chloride. This real-world pilot met all regulatory requirements, leveraged a state-of-the art quality management approach, and demonstrated a novel, agile compounding capability for drugs on shortage. It resulted in patients being treated with high-quality medicines that were made on-demand and on-site.

"We're not just filling gaps in the supply chain, we're redefining it," said Kevin Kyle, CEO of Germfree. "With On Demand Pharma, we are enabling healthcare providers to meet patient needs faster and more reliably, whether in urban centers or rural areas. This partnership also demonstrates our commitment to using cutting-edge technologies to improve the way hospital pharmacies respond to the needs of their patients, with more to come."

Matt Pietras, CEO of On Demand Pharmaceuticals, added, "This collaboration with Germfree provides us with the high-quality modular infrastructure needed to provide our Medication-as-a-Service (MaaS) where patients and healthcare providers need it most."

The innovative model will allow hospitals like NMMC to produce critical medications locally, improving access for patients and ensuring continuity of care even during global supply disruptions. "Our pilot work completed through this collaboration has proven these new capabilities for on-site compounded medications are able to help us better serve our communities in a timelier manner," said Wes Pitts, System Director of Pharmacy at North Mississippi Health Services, which includes NMMC in Tupelo. "In our pilot program, we were able to successfully compound approximately 12,000 doses of shortage medications starting in December 2023 following regulations from the Board of Pharmacy."

"We are on the cusp of expanding distributed medicine production through our network while creating a new paradigm," said John Lewin, Chief Medical Officer at ODP. "I envision a future where pharmacists take a leading role in medicine production – both today and as personalized medicine becomes the standard at the point of care."

The collaboration between Germfree and On Demand Pharmaceuticals is set to transform the future of medicine accessibility by providing healthcare providers with the tools to produce medications on demand, whenever and wherever they are needed.

About Germfree Laboratories: Germfree Laboratories is a global leader in cleanroom and critical environment technologies, specializing in providing innovative solutions for biopharmaceutical, healthcare, and research sectors. Learn more at www.germfree.com.

About On Demand Pharmaceuticals: On Demand Pharmaceuticals (ODP) is revolutionizing pharmaceutical access with its Pharmacy on Demand platform, offering agile, on-site production of medications. ODP is committed to overcoming industry barriers and ensuring high-quality medicines are accessible to all. Learn more at www.ondemandpharma.com.

About North Mississippi Medical Center: North Mississippi Medical Center (NMMC) is one of the largest non-metropolitan hospitals in the U.S., providing comprehensive medical services to a growing community. NMMC is committed to innovation in healthcare delivery to ensure high-quality, accessible care for its patients. For more information, visit www.nmhs.net.

SOURCE Germfree Laboratories LLC