Introducing the GoodHealth Shop

mPharma is piloting a new conversion retail franchise model for PPMVs in Nigeria funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

What are PPMVs?

PPMVs (Patent and Proprietary Medicine Vendors) are defined as “ persons without formal training in pharmacy who sell orthodox pharmaceutical products on a retail basis for profit”. They were established as a category of retailer by the Nigerian Ministry of Health to provide a source of medicine in communities with limited access to essential health commodities. An estimated 200,000 operated in the country as of 2005, far outnumbering the 2,639 retail pharmacies that were registered in the same year, and more than all other cadres of health workers in the country.

PPMVs play a critical role in the delivery of health services for child and maternal health in Nigeria. 33% of Nigerians utilize the services of PPMVs. In Nigeria, about 50% of oral contraceptive pill users obtain their products and counseling services from PPMVs.Several studies have shown that PPMVs are the first source of care for between 8% — 55% of illnesses occurring among children under the age of five.

Despite the important role PPMVs play in the delivery of health services for the vulnerable, they face significant challenges. They are the biggest source of fake and substandard drugs in Nigeria. They operate in very poor and unhygienic physical conditions which make them less convenient as spaces for patient care. As businesses, PPMVs face significant constraints on capital and struggle to consistently stock their shops with high quality essential medicines.

We launched GoodHealth to fix this.

What is GoodHealth?

GoodHealth is a retailer’s cooperative that unites PPMVs under one brand to leverage scale, marketing expertise and insights to drive better business decisions, increase growth and profitability and enhance patient care in local communities.

What does a PPMV get from GoodHealth?

• mPharma will refurbish their shop at no upfront cost to the PPMV owner.

This is how a PPMV looks before they become a GoodHealth Shop

This how they look after becoming a GoodHealth PPMV Shop

• Access to mPharma’s Vendor Managed Inventory Service — We have developed a medicine formulary with over 200 products that they can sell. This is based on the approved product list by the Pharmacists’ Council of Nigeria for PPMVs. Through our VMI service, mPharma will source, procure, finance and distribute the products to their shops. We will also manage product expiries on their behalf.
• A Mutti Mobile Clinic Van that will serve as a clinic on wheels to provide free health screenings and family planning counseling to members of the community where the GoodHealth shops are located. This service will direct patient traffic to the shops, growing their revenues.

• Mutti, our rewards program that will offer interest free payment plans for contraceptives and other products. Customers who are adherent to treatment will also earn cashbacks.

• Business and financial management training — We are bringing all the PPMVs into the formal banking sector by opening bank accounts for them. We will support them in banking all their sales so they can begin to build a financial record that can open them up to loans and other financial products in the future. We will provide them with Bloom, our proprietary Point of Sale software to record their sales and inventory levels. Finally, we will provide customer service trainings and expense-management practices to help them maximize profits.

Bloom, mPharma’s proprietary PoS software

What changes do we want to see in the PPMvs after they become GoodHealth shops?

• 100% fulfilment rate for all child and maternal health products.
• Elimination of substandard and fake products from their shelves.
• A 20% increase in their sales.
• The ability to offer primary care including family planning counseling to customers through the Mutti Mobile Clinic.
• Introduction of rapid testing for malaria and pregnancy tests for customers.

Their communities will be in GoodHealth.

Who are the inaugural members of GoodHealth?

95% of the owners in the first cohort of GoodHealth Shops are women. They are located in low income communities in Lagos including Ikorodu, Alimosho and Agege.

Conclusion

We are excited to bring the QualityRx model to PPMVs. We hope to use the lessons learned from this pilot to scale GoodHealth into a leading franchise brand for PPMVs in Nigeria.

Listen to Madam Oduyemi on why she joined the GoodHealth network — https://youtu.be/dcwiwDf6liI

Our GoodHealth PPMV Shops will help build a Nigeria in good health.