The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 278 No 7449 p475
28 April 2007

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New delivery arrangements “have reduced service levels and damaged reputations”

Pfizer and UniChem’s new distribution arrangements have reduced service levels and damaged the companies’ standing in the eyes of pharmacists, the results of a survey conducted on behalf of AAH suggest.

As AstraZeneca revealed details of its new distribution arrangements (see above), Steve Dunn, managing director of AAH announced results of the survey at the group’s convention in Singapore this week. Holdern Pearmain conducted the survey of 353 pharmacists across Great Britain on behalf of AAH, interviewing 153 AAH customers, 100 UniChem customers, 50 Phoenix customers and 50 regional full-line wholesale customers.

The researchers found that 62 per cent of pharmacists were “not at all satisfied” with the new distribution system, 52 per cent thought the overall quality of service had reduced and 68 per cent said the discounts they had received from Pfizer had declined. In addition, 86 per cent said that Pfizer’s reputation had been damaged by the changes and 52 per cent thought the same was true of UniChem’s reputation. Mr Dunn said: “We predicted that service would be poor, pharmacists would suffer increased workloads and costs and decreasing income, and that is exactly what has happened.”

A UniChem spokeswoman responded: “UniChem notes that the AAH-sponsored survey represents the views of a very small sample of pharmacists. It would also like to reveal that it has recently carried out courtesy calls to over 7,000 Pfizer-only customers (excluding UniChem first-line and second-line customers), which have confirmed that over 95 per cent are satisfied, or more than satisfied, with the service UniChem is providing.”

A Pfizer spokesman told The Journal: “We are not surprised by AAH’s latest attempt to discredit Pfizer’s direct-to-pharmacy model. Clearly this is an effort to mask the U-turn in their own approach to direct-to-pharmacy supply. Pfizer is confident in the success of direct-to-pharmacy to date; the data we review nationally demonstrate that this model works very effectively through our logistics service provider, UniChem. Our reputation will be built on good product supply, and innovative ways of working with pharmacy in future.”