By Abhishek Ranjan
My journey in the social development sector began in 1997, at the age of 16, studying in high school. I joined my neighborhood rotary club’s youth movement and volunteered to be a part of its numerous social initiatives. My first experience was a pulse polio drive. Twice a year, we would go into slums, provide the OPV oral vaccine and educate new mothers on the importance of taking the right pharmaceutical at the right time.
Reflections on Access to Healthcare
During the visit, I would often see those who lost out on having these tiny drops on time, who have to live with that burden. This was my first ever experience at a community health program. I remember being distraught to realize, that I was too late in bringing these tiny drops to those who needed it the most. To realize that the drops were actually not very expensive, so why did it not make it to those who are suffering now? Was it their financial situation that prevented them from getting to it; and now these small children have to face these adversaries for the rest of their lives? This was just one of the numerous diseases that could have been prevented if it were for access to affordable healthcare. How on Earth did these bypass all these people I wondered?
Global Efforts Against Polio and Other Diseases
Today, the largest internationally-coordinated public-private partnership for health has reduced polio by 99%. Polio now survives among the world’s poorest and most marginalized communities. Only Afghanistan and Pakistan have never stopped the transmission of polio which is truly unfortunate since polio is among the few diseases which CAN be eradicated completely. Small pox has been eradicated by vaccines potentially saving over five million lives annually. Measles and Whooping cough are on their way too.
Advocacy for Healthcare Accessibility
Since then, I have been involved in many health camps, eye surgery camps, corrective disability surgery camps and have always wondered why all these measures are not accessible everywhere. Now, I have been in the social-development sector for nearly 2 decades, and I continue to believe that lack of access to healthcare is indeed a human rights issue.
CSR in the Pharmaceutical Sector
As a CSR professional in the IT sector, it is imperative for me to continue to think about these issues, the challenges they face and explore solutions. This concern is embedded into my core and I worry every day for the future of healthcare. It was refreshing and encouraging to realize that Melinda and Bill Gates share the same concerns and are exploring new approaches which involve increasing advocacy and technical assistance, improving data systems and strengthening food systems as they realize that better data is needed to define a problem such as malnutrition, diagnose its root causes, design interventions and track its progress.
The Role of Pharmaceutical Companies in Society
I feel that pharmaceuticals and healthcare can do a lot to bring together the care professionals and medicine to those in need. Companies in the pharmaceutical sector are uniquely placed in society in that it develops AND distributes healthcare products in a for-profit manner. For this reason they are also always under constant scrutiny. Pharmaceuticals like any other sector, needs to be careful about its reputation and can gain significantly from positive publicity.
Corporate Social Responsibility in Pharma
It has become evident that besides growing the business, it is also important to build trustworthy and sustainable relationships with consumers and communities. This is essentially asking companies to look beyond their commercial activities and review their impact on the society around them. In the context of pharmaceuticals, this means to view everyone outside the company staff as consumers; patients seeking affordable healthcare.
Leveraging CSR for Societal Good
This got me thinking about how the pharmaceutical companies can play a great place in society, working with the community. Developing nations are burdened with herculean socio-economic challenges like poverty, illiteracy, lack of healthcare etc. are still ubiquitous and the government has limited resources to tackle these challenges. However if a pharmaceutical company wants to embed itself to be a part of the solution, it must define its CSR goals and view the exercise as a long-term exercise to fulfill societal expectations to cultivate public goodwill.
Harnessing Technology for Healthcare Access
Pharma companies are now setting up rural toll-free booths to access their wider customer-base so as to provide much needed care, advice and health tips. Set-up video-conferencing for rural clinics to prevent medication errors. I remember how a few years ago, GlaxoSmithKline had partnered with tech giant – Vodafone for their innovative mobile technology to help vaccinate more children in Mozambique, Africa against common infectious diseases. The project aimed to establish mobile technology solutions to support healthcare workers, improve record keeping and enable better management of vaccine stock. The Pharma industry is now also beginning to analyze big data to obtain insights to address problems relating to variability in healthcare quality and expenditure. This means medicines can soon become more affordable.
Evolving Notions of CSR in Business
These are exciting times. The term – corporate social responsibility (CSR) is not new to you and me. However, it has evolved with time and has multiple interpretations for what it means for a business. CSR projects are not mere obligations, it is a method to de-risk potential damages and build corporate reputation. The pharmaceutical industry among others are all about innovation. So why not collaborate and explore more innovative ways to use technology to help communities and their people?
About the Author:
The author is an international Marketing, CSR and Sustainability Professional. He is currently managing Global CSR and Sustainability programs for Brillio Technology. He is a member of Global CSR Guru Meet up and recently awarded as 100 top CSR professional in the world.
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