B: Strengthening Resilience by Drug Development and Innovative Medical Treatments

The COVID-19 pandemic was a historical hallmark that affected our lives in several ways, especially by showing the vulnerability of the global health system.
 
One of the critical lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic is the need for a more resilient global healthcare system. The pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in the supply chain for drugs, active pharmaceutical ingredients, medical devices, and equipment, primarily due to a heavy reliance on single-sourced suppliers and limited redundancy. To enhance the sustainability of the healthcare infrastructure, a comprehensive resilience strategy must be put in place. A resilient healthcare system should be built on a systematic framework that incorporates key criteria such as redundancy, decentralized sourcing, reliability, and an emphasis on quality over cost.

By adopting a more rounded approach to face these problems, healthcare research and industry can be better prepared to face future global health crises. Concerning Brazil and Germany, we share many concerns about the resilience of medical drug discovery, development, production, and supply. Joining forces here, both academic and industrial, would be of major benefit to all. The goal of the thematic session is to shed light on these general health issues and obstacles, as well as show new strategies for overcoming these matters, which have been proposed and developed in these two partner countries.