Organisation of cross-sector collaboration and its influence on crisis management effectiveness among pharmaceutical supply chain stakeholders during the COVID-19 pandemic

Latonen, S. H., Suominen, R. M., Juppo, A. M., Airaksinen, M. and Seeck, H. (2023) Organisation of cross-sector collaboration and its influence on crisis management effectiveness among pharmaceutical supply chain stakeholders during the COVID-19 pandemic. Public Health, 222. pp. 196-204. ISSN 0033-3506

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Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the organisation of cross-sector collaboration and how it influenced crisis management effectiveness among pharmaceutical supply chain stakeholders in Finland during the COVID-19 pandemic. Study design: Qualitative semi-structured interview study. Methods: Purposeful selection was used to obtain the study sample consisting of leaders and specialists from the pharmaceutical industry and wholesalers (n = 9), community pharmacy owners (n = 9), hospital pharmacy heads (n = 6), government agency directors and officials (n = 5) and advocacy organisation representatives (n = 2). Inductive content analysis was performed to examine the data from the semi-structured individual (n = 29) and paired (n = 2) interviews in March–May 2021. Results: A new conceptual model was developed to describe the organisation of collaborative crisis management. Without a predefined crisis management organisation, cross-sector collaboration was organised based on previous collaboration structures, channels and relationships and through the establishment of issue-specific groups by government agencies as per legal mandates. Crisis dynamics and related issues guided the group formation and meeting frequency. Advocacy organisations and government agencies acted in bridging role between stakeholders. Shared knowledge among pharmaceutical supply chain stakeholders enabled anticipation and preparedness during crisis; shared resources fostered maintenance of core functions; and shared problem-solving facilitated cross-sectoral solutions. Conclusion: This was the first study exploring cross-sector collaboration among pharmaceutical supply chain stakeholders during a crisis. Sharing knowledge, resources and problem-solving increased the crisis management effectiveness. The study presented a new illustration of organising for collaborative crisis management and added knowledge about private-third sector collaboration and issue-specific groups to the cross-sector collaboration and crisis management literature.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Funding Information: S.H. Latonen would like to thank the Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation and the Association of Finnish Pharmacies; and H. Seeck would like to thank the Foundation for Municipal Development and the Foundation for Economic Education (grant number 14-7385) for the funding that has made working on this paper possible. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors
Divisions:	Media and Communications
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > HD28 Management. Industrial Management R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine
Date Deposited:	17 Aug 2023 09:06
Last Modified:	25 Apr 2024 07:43
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/120001

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