Knowledge Management in the Pharmaceutical Industry Essay

The study of experience attention is a process that has been inquiryed for centuries by occidental philosophers and traditional theorists, however it is and until latterly that familiarity worry has been the main focalise for m any(prenominal) organisations. Many ingest utter that it was the publishing of Karl Wiigs, friendship way foundations (1993), that waivered the coarse interest in realizeledge precaution and nearly two decades on KM is now considered as an essential ray of light for companies to improve their performance and adaptability. 1 Not alto take a leakher this save the concept of acquaintance has been regarded as a businesses more or less precious summation and bluely critical in c are a firm competitive. 2 This study provide look at the knowledge management of one of the most Knowledge intensifier industries in the world, the pharmaceutical patience, looking at, analyse and criticising the different strategies that are art objectd in side the exertion. The pharmaceutical industry is rapidly ripening and rapidly evolving , with organisations constantly siting in their research and development discussion sections for the development of wise and priceless explicit instruction.In 2007 6,525 billion was spent on R+D in the UK for the pharmaceutical market, showing that firms invest large sums of money in this knowledge intensive industry. 3 Pharmacy as an opening move governing body The pharmaceutical Industry is behavior of like a fraternity of coiffure (CoP) where both the organisations deal out a reciprocal interest in medicine, working unneurotic to promote the acquisition and communion of knowledge, with a common goal of providing the ruff apply for the public. 4 It is fool that the industry is heavy reliant on using IT in storing and admissioning information.Since the fundament web 2. 0 there has been a rapid increase in the use of enterprise systems across the industry. An enterprise system whollyows for data to be identified, captured and embedded in software to be accessed by on the whole organisations within the industry. 5 A clear congresswoman of this comes from a professional body c all(prenominal)ed the department of health, this body cut ins explicit data on the internet in a PDF called the special K keep back, this can be accessed by any member of the public, as healthy as any organisation.The book provides the in vogue(p) information on vaccines and vaccination procedures for all vaccine preventable diseases. 6 Not only is the book accessible via the web but also a hard transcript of the book has been distributed to immunisation health professionals around the country, making it very easy for any drug shop to find the information it needs. What makes this store of information so reliable and valuable to organisations is that it updates itself with new editions from information shared amongst different pharmacists, adding new vaccines etc.T his emblem of knowledge management system is efficacious for this industry and can be offend explained using Dalkirs knowledge management cycle 7 As it shows, knowledge is captured by different organisations through the use of research and development, this knowledge is hence assessed and shared with organisations and pharmacies all over the country via the use of the parking lot book. Pharmacys then use this knowledge to purchase the beneficial medicine and vaccinations to sell to the public.The update part of the life cycle comes in the opening of new editions brining new information. there is a sense of a mini community within this management system, where the role of burnish is valued sooner highly as a knowledge sharing environment is created and designed so firms and organisations can share their information. 8 except one of the main drawbacks that comes with this knowledge management system is that it does hinder competitiveness.Larry Prusak (1996) say The only i ntimacy that gives an organization a competitive edge the only issue that is sustainable is what it knows, how it uses what it knows, & how fast it can know something new 9 The introduction of the green book meant every pharmacy in Britain has access to the same information, making it difficult for organisations to get ahead in terms of knowledge. However it is important to none that pharmacys are not entirely dough orientated, but also aimed at providing the best possible medicine and vaccinations to the public.The General pharmaceutical Council and its implications Continued professional development is merry in the pharmacy profession as it allows for individuals and organisations to reflect back on their convention and then create plans to upgrade and improve. There is a professional body dedicated entirely to this system called the General Pharmaceutical Council (GDP), 10 this body provides a particular modelling for individuals and organisations to set targets found on their front practices.The CDP offers a cycle for firms to reflect on their previous practices and then plan on ways to improve practices on the upcoming based on experiences and knowledge they have acquired. An early(a) aspect of the CDP is something called Continued master copy Development (CPD) 11 This is a set of standards that are universal to all companies in the industry and which they must all comply with. What makes this so effective is the CPD is applied to all pharmacists and distress to meet the standards would result in the pharmacy losing their registration.The CPD expects each(prenominal) pharmacist to make a minimum of 9 entries a year, based on the knowledge acquired to update their protest practices. This is a huge incentive for all firms to get involved as failure to do so would result in losing their registration. Although this is a good strategy in attempting to engage organisations in learning, there is a key fundamental drawback. Although the system allows for terminal of explicit data from each organisation, it does not allow for pharmacies to access information from other pharmacies therefore stopping any sharing of information or data.However it is clear there are other professional bodies available for this. The effect of IT The internet for galore(postnominal) may have made the storehouse of knowledge much easier, however there is a negative associated with heavy reliance on IT. The effect may be that members from departments and organisations no longer need to confer with with each other as the information can be taken from a directory from any enterprise system. This allow slew face to face conversations between specialists which spark new ideas resulting in a neglect of new information coming in.The approachability and easy access of knowledge will act as a determent for individuals to search for new information. Conclusion Knowledge management is now considered essential, with many agreeing the knowledge a bu siness has is one of its most precious assets. Overall it is quite evident that the pharmaceutical industry is heavily reliant on the use of IT to process, store and share knowledge. The professional bodies mentioned above are only a few of the recite of enterprise systems dedicated to allowing organisations to update their knowledge of the profession and maintain a high aim of customer satisfaction.The use of a universal framework to engage pharmacists in assessing their own practices is an essential tool in making firms acknowledge their own level of knowledge as well as keeping them up to date with the most recent information. The fact that there is yet competition and huge sums of money invested into R+D shows that all across the industry people are still dispute new ideas, however one thing is for certain, each organisation relies on each other for new information and knowledge in this ever changing industry.