The Future of Pharma Operations: Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Takes the Lead
CXOToday has engaged in an exclusive interview with Dr. Radhika Mahadev, Head of Robotic Process Automation, Merck Life Science
How is Robotic Process Automation (RPA) poised to influence the pharma industry?
Many procedures and tasks across sectors require a significant amount of time and people to execute, which has a direct impact on productivity and resulting in reduced profit margins. Robotic Process automation can be beneficial in this circumstance. Robotic process automation (RPA) has seen a major surge in recent years, with many firms aggressively pursuing and adopting efficient pre-programmed software bots to handle repetitive, time-consuming, and more error-prone jobs. Speaking particularly of the pharmaceutical industry, some of the primary challenges it faces include expensive drug testing expenses, regulatory fees, the availability of new treatments on the market, and many other factors.
RPA digitization and automation provide pharmaceutical firms with the tools they need to thrive, from enhancing the patient experience to optimising organisational agility and assisting in the achievement and maintenance of regulatory compliance. The result of robotic process automation in supply chain management is a 43% time reduction in billing, data administration, credit, and collections, among other things, which is a major victory for any firm. RPA in supply chain management improves productivity, costs, and other metrics for the firm.
Can you give an overview of the pharmacy automation market and the current trends prevailing in the same?
The pharmacy automation market is a rapidly growing industry that involves the use of technology to automate various aspects of the pharmacy workflow. This includes dispensing medication, managing inventory, and tracking patient information. Factors driving the market include rising need for effective healthcare delivery, the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases, and the desire to prevent drug errors.
According to market research reports, the global pharmacy automation market is estimated to be worth more than Rs $8 billion by this year, growing at a CAGR of roughly around 8% from 2021 to 2023. The market is segmented based on product type, end-user, and geography.
One of the current trends in the pharmacy automation market is the adoption of robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) to improve efficiency and accuracy in medication dispensing. Robotic systems can accurately count and package medications, reducing the risk of errors and improving patient safety. AI can also be used to analyse patient data and forecast medicine requirements, decreasing medication mistakes, and increasing patient outcomes.
Another trend in the pharmacy automation market is the use of mobile apps and tele pharmacy to increase access to medication and healthcare services. Patients in rural or underserved locations can use tele pharmacy to connect with chemists remotely and receive medication counselling and management services. Mobile apps can be used to track medication adherence and provide patients with reminders to take their medication.
Other trends in the pharmacy automation market include installation of electronic prescribing systems and the usage of blockchain technology to improve supply chain management and prevent counterfeit drugs.
Overall, the pharmacy automation market is predicted to expand as healthcare providers strive to improve patient safety, increase efficiency, and reduce costs in the administration of medications and healthcare services.
How can RPA streamline the process and improve the efficiency of the clinical trial industry?
RPA can help automate many of the administrative tasks involved in clinical trials, which can help to speed up the process and reduce costs. For example, RPA can be used to automatically extract and analyse data from clinical trial reports, allowing any safety hazards to be identified more quickly and efficiently. RPA can also be used to automate tasks such as patient screening and recruitment, data entry, and monitoring, reducing errors and increasing the speed and accuracy of the clinical trial process. By streamlining these tasks, RPA can help to make the clinical trial process more efficient, cost-effective, and ultimately boost the odds of successful drug discovery by streamlining these processes.
What do you mean by a “digital workforce”? What is the difference between a bot and a digital worker?
A “digital workforce” is often defined as a collection of software applications, robots, or other types of digital agents capable of doing various tasks and activities in a business or organization. These digital workers are designed to automate repetitive and tedious tasks, streamline business processes, and minimise the need for human labour in certain areas. Digital workers can include chatbots, virtual assistants, machine learning algorithms, and robotic process automation (RPA) systems. They can perform a wide range of tasks, such as data entry, customer service, data analysis, report generation, and more. The use of a digital workforce can help organizations improve efficiency, reduce costs, and improve accuracy and consistency in their operations. However, it can also raise concerns about job displacement and the necessity for human workers to re-skill and up-skill to adapt to changing job responsibilities and requirements.
A bot is a type of software application designed to automate repetitive operations that are normally done by people. Bots are often used to perform tasks that are simple and well-defined, such as answering frequently asked questions, processing orders, or generating automated responses to customer inquiries. Bots are typically created with precise rules and decision-making processes to work inside a certain context or domain.
On the other hand, a digital worker is a more sophisticated type of automation technology that can perform a wide range of tasks, including more complex and unstructured tasks. Digital workers are meant to replicate human behaviours and can interact with a variety of systems and applications, making them ideal for activities requiring greater intelligence and adaptability. Digital workers can also be trained to perform new activities and learn and adapt to new settings. Digital workers, as opposed to bots, are usually more customizable and can be programmed to perform across many domains and settings.
How is Merck integrating automation in solving various challenges of its pharma business?
Given the enormous amount of data generated by the pharmaceutical business, automation solutions such as RPA have already become indispensable. However, the implementation of RPA in this industry has been modest thus far but is likely to be a gradual process spanning years and it is a development that can and must be anticipated. A sure-fire way of speeding up this trend is with increased collaboration and skill development programs to fill the gaps in talent.
With this one-of-a-kind breakthrough , we have reached the pinnacle of digital transformation regulatory. Earlier there was software that assisted us in performing certain activities manually. However, RPA technology represents a significant shift from the way Merck previously viewed the business.
Each country has its own regulations for medication research, which we must follow. Product launches in certain geographies are fraught with duties and complexities, particularly when releasing a product in a specific environment or country.
We have approached it in three phases: firstly, the similarity of the processes, then harmonization of the process and last, scaling the solution from one region to another. Considering APAC region and country like as India, we received positive time savings feedback from enterprises, prompting us to replicate our RPA methodology in countries with the most stringent rules, such as Columbia.
In those countries the RPA bot checks and releases the order, demonstrating the widespread acceptance and incorporation of automation technology in workflows. These order checks take 14-15 minutes on average, but the bots accomplish them in 5 minutes. Not only the regulatory team has been benefitted through RPA, but also the other subordinate teams like the supply chain operation where they can release the order on time. Similarly, the customer excellence team can now deliver the product on time to the clients. Merck benefits from RPA across the whole value chain.
