100% Life imported a unique OST drug to Ukraine
Since 2022, the country has been actively attracting donor assistance due to war and the lack of public funds for substitution maintenance therapy programs. CO 100% Life’s procurement team led by Yevheniia Rudenka, having in-depth experience in procurement and logistics processes of medicines, have not stood aside from these issues and actively helped patients to receive medicines in a timely manner because it directly affects the quality of each patient’s life.
We are presenting a recent success story regarding the supply of Suboxone, which was delivered in response to the needs of the Ministry of Health a few days ago.
Suboxone is a new drug for Ukraine, one pill containing buprenorphine and naloxone. The drug reduces mortality from opioid use disorder by 50%, relieves drug cravings and withdrawal symptoms. The combination form was approved for medical use in the United States in 2002, in the European Union in 2017, and in 2019. The drug was most often prescribed in the United States for substitution therapy patients. Buprenorphine/naloxone has been shown to be effective for the treatment of opioid dependence and has generally the same efficacy as methadone. Both buprenorphine/naloxone and methadone are significantly more effective than retention-based treatment.
In Ukraine, the supply of such medicines is quite complicated, as it requires significant efforts to obtain permits and organize logistics, and sometimes, the process from beginning to end can take about a year of constant effort.
In 2022, the Ministry of Health and the Center for Public Health appealed to Indivior UK Limited with a request to donate this drug. In response, the company agreed to provide 9,500 sets.
Considering the difficult processes of organizing logistics and its own experience, CO 100% Life’s team maintained communication with the donor, SE Ukrmedpostach and SE Center for Public Health of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine in relation to the processes of obtaining import documents, provided advice on the supply of humanitarian aid to the country. In the future, CO 100% Life’s team will pay for the drug delivery to state medical institutions.
«It was not without complicated communications, at one point. After the documents for importing medicinal products were received, the donor stopped the communication, and it was not possible to contact the responsible persons in the company for a long time. We also involved colleagues from other international organizations, but all in vain. The situation was aggravated by the fact that the permits were valid until early August and we realized we were losing the delivery. We still decided to do everything possible to avoid losing that chance for Ukraine, so we used the contacts of the secretary of Indivior, a large company, and that worked out. We found new responsible people, resumed communication, and yet there was very little time left for delivery. I am grateful to my team for a very professional approach to the donor’s advice on the organization of logistics. The goods arrived in Ukraine the day before the last day of the documents’ validity. We did not even believe it would be possible!», says Yevheniia Rudenka, the CO 100% Life Procurement Lead.
We are infinitely grateful to all partners: the Ministry of Health, SE Ukrmedpostach, the Center for Public Health, for their active position and work that is carried out to ensure the life of patients with substitution maintenance therapy in Ukraine.
