Applying Lessons Learned from the Birmingham Free Clinic Dispensary to Inform Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Management in Low-Resource Settings

Ensuring an uninterrupted supply of drugs is a critical part of providing healthcare in a low-resource setting. Therapeutics is an essential component of every health system and largely relies on accurate and timely management of the drug supply chain. Stockouts are frequently encountered in these settings and can result in detrimental effects on patient care, not only poor outcomes but also drug-resistance in the cases of chronic diseases like HIV and TB. The drug supply chain includes procurement, shipping, storage and dispensing medication to patients. Accurate information on current stock counts and projections of future medication requirements is necessary to minimize stockouts and expired stock, keeping critical drugs on the shelves and preventing low-usage medications from expiring.