IBM and OrbitalRX Collaborate To Address Drug Shortage Crisis

IBM Watson Health is collaborating with OrbitalRX to tackle the emerging drug shortage crisis. The move comes in a time where healthcare providers and pharmacy teams are scrambling to address the drug shortage crisis that has accelerated rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The American Society of Health-Systems Pharmacists has listed as many as 200 drugs on the drug shortage list in the U.S. “As hospitals around the world experience shortages of life-saving therapies, there is an immediate, critical need for evidence-based information around clinical alternatives,” said Todd Nolen, General Manager, IBM Micromedex Solutions, IBM Watson Health.

IBM Watson Health will be working with OrbitalRX to help give access to evidence-based treatment information in addition to hospital’s current drug inventory status and drug sourcing options. The companies aim to do this by combining OrbitalRX's Drug Shortage Management Platform and IBM® Micromedex® into one unified solution called OrbitalRX and Micromedex. This will help in swift analysis of the supply chain and identifying clinical alternatives for drugs that are currently in short supply.

The unified solution will source data from one of the largest medical information databases i.e., IBM Micromedex. It is used by over 4,500 hospitals and health systems all over the world to augment decision making. Combined with OrbitalRX platform, the solution will deliver workflow efficiencies that will help pharmacists in a major way. OrbitalRX and Micromedex is expected to be available in Q4 2020.