KUALA LUMPUR: Duopharma Biotech Bhd (DBB), via its subsidiary Duopharma Marketing Sdn Bhd (DMSB), signed an exclusive distributorship agreement with Owen Mumford Sdn Bhd (OMSB), a subsidiary of UK-based medical device company Owen Mumford, for the distribution of medical devices in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei.
As per the agreement, DBB will distribute a range of diabetes care and eye care products, namely the Unifine, Pentips and Unifine Pentips Plus insulin pen needles, Unistik 3 and Unilet Excelite lancets and Autodrop eye drop guide, to government and private healthcare facilities, other patient care facilities and retail outlets, with potential expansion of the range of products distributed.
Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) chief executive officer Datuk Wira Arham Abdul Rahman said the alliance between DBB and OMSB integrates two pivotal sectors of healthcare -pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
“This integration showcases our dedication to improving healthcare access through innovative technologies, embodying our commitment to the well-being of our population.
“The medical devices sector is prioritised in Mission 1 of the New Industrial Master Plan 2030, where the vision is to transform Malaysia into an innovation-driven manufacturing hub.
“It underscores the capacity building in the medical devices and pharmaceutical industries by leveraging innovation and high-skilled talent to drive a high complexity economic agenda,” he said in a statement.
DBB group managing director Leonard Ariff Abdul Shatar said OMSB’s innovative product range is a great fit for DBB’s current offerings to patients, healthcare providers and carers.
“As a leading Malaysian healthcare company, we believe that having greater access to quality medical devices can improve patient compliance to routine care procedures such as blood sugar testing and insulin injections among diabetics, thus leading to better healthcare outcomes in the longer term.
“This is especially important in light of the growing diabetes burden in Malaysia.
“Besides, this is also in line with our environmental, social and governance (ESG) focus on improving access to healthcare, whereby providing more options to patients means improving their ability to get the care that best suits their needs,” he said.
The prevalence of diabetes among Malaysian adults has grown from 11.2 per cent in 2011 to 18.3 per cent in 2019, with the disease is expected to affect 7 million Malaysian adults by 2025 at a prevalence of 31.3 per cent.
The British High Commissioner to Malaysia Ailsa Terry said the coming together of DBB’s pharmaceutical expertise and OMSB’s acute understanding of medical devices will benefit and support millions of people living with diabetes.
“This partnership represents what can be achieved when the very best from the United Kingdom (UK) and Malaysia join forces to support something incredibly important—the health and well-being of its people,” she said.
Founded in the UK, OMSB is a pioneer in medical design innovation that revolutionised diabetes care with the first injector pen and currently has a wide product portfolio covering diabetes care, blood and patient specimen collection, point-of-care testing, neuropathy screening, ophthalmology care and sexual healthcare.
“Since OMSB Malaysia began operations in 2015, we have focused on elevating healthcare through engagement with patients and healthcare professionals and tailoring medical devices to meet their needs, besides conducting ongoing education to ensure the correct usage of devices for optimal healthcare outcomes.
“We are committed to delivering innovative, high-quality products and have launched initiatives such as including pen needles in complimentary bespoke starter kits at local government hospitals and providing vouchers to support patients in the B40 demographic.
“With nearly RM100 million invested in our manufacturing facilities, operations and programmes in Malaysia since 2015, we aspire to continue serving as a source of advanced medical solutions in the country as well as the surrounding Asian region,” OMSB regional managing director Shirley Loh said.
