Change Maker: A New Look at Shortages

When Laura Bray was told that one of the critical drugs her daughter needed was on shortage, she responded by asking supply chain questions because of her extensive background as a business professor. Once she navigated the system for her own daughter, she recognized the dire needs of other patients who are reliant upon medications and drugs for survival.

Laura formed Angels for Change (angelsforchange.org) and named herself “Chief Change Maker.” The impact she is having is getting noticed locally and nationally. Laura gave testimony in a June 2023 Congressional hearing on shortages, talked about shortages at the White House in July and co-coordinated a visit from Kathy Castor to Tampa Bay area hospital roundtable and press conference.

Laura didn’t set out to specifically address the nearly twodecade parenteral nutrition (PN) drug shortage, she accidentally stumbled over it. With a complicated and well thought out algorithm, she discovered that the vast majority of the most vulnerable drugs were related to PN. Meanwhile, Oley Director of Advocacy and Outreach, Lisa Metzger, stumbled onto an article about Laura and connected her with Oley Executive Director Beth Gore.

Angels for Changeʼs Project Protect in 2022 helped reduce a major shortage related to potassium chloride and sodium chloride, two main components of PN. As Laura described this complex process, Beth asked how Oley could help protect the entire class of PN drugs, sterile injectables and fluids. Since then, Angels for Change and Oley have been working towards that goal. Oley is also working towards addressing the enteral formula shortages.

Our collaboration with Angels for Change has just begun. In July, Lisa Metzger and Oley Ambassador Crystal Killian attended Summit One, Angels for Change's annual meeting. There, representatives from all part of the supply chain-including competitors-joined with the common goal of ending shortages.

In August, Beth was interviewed by CNN for their upcoming feature about Laura in their Champions for Change segment with Dr. Sanjay Gupta. In September, Beth spoke at the Angels for Change Gala (more about that in the next issue). And much more.

Laura says, “Since our founding, Angels for Change has been ending drug shortages for our most vulnerable patients. As

we work to end all healthcare crises created by drug shortages, we are advocating for, and supporting, proactive, public-private partnerships at the beginning of the supply chain to create more resiliency reducing patient impact.” We are excited to be working with such a change maker as Laura.