'Weird epiphany': Pharmacist fulfilling childhood dream with her innovative solutions to medication shortages

Morenike Eniola Olaosebikan was seven years old and standing on the balcony of her family’s home in Lagos, Nigeria when she had an abrupt realization about the rapid spread of HIV in the country. “I suddenly had this thought—this weird epiphany—that I want to be part of the solution,” recalled Olaosebikan, CEO and founder of two Edmonton-based businesses: KemNet, an online platform that connects patients and prescribers to compounding pharmacists, and Kemet Ltd., which has created a novel concept for a “pharmaceutical factory in a box.” Olaosebikan’s moment of clarity on the balcony—reinforced when she contracted tuberculosis and had to make regular visits to the hospital, where she saw HIV patients—led her to pursue a career in healthcare. She came to Canada in 2004 and earned a degree in pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Alberta. But she knew her goals went beyond pharmacy. With physician father back in Nigeria, she immersed herself in activities and studies that focused on human rights, social innovation, health equity and drug innovation. An arts-based organization she founded—called Ribbon Rouge Foundation—to raise funds to eradicate HIV donated close to $40,000 over nine years to HIV Edmonton, the Stephen Lewis Foundation and the Joint United Nations AIDS program. Read: Compounding the problem (in a good way): How one company is helping with children’s pain and fever relief shortage Today, Olaosebiken is focused on growing her businesses. Her KemNet online platform has proven to be an invaluable resource, particularly during last year’s shortage of kids’ pain and fever medications. But it’s the latter business—Kemet Ltd.—that’s advancing Olaosebikan’s social goals. The big vision behind Kemet is to improve access to drugs in lower-income countries, which are often last to receive medications, or which have to scramble to bring in medications quickly—and usually end up paying a premium price—when certain illnesses surge. This health inequity was highlighted during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the world’s poorest countries stood by while richer states rolled out vaccination programs. Olaosebikan's solution? A modular, easily transportable facility—which she calls Kembox—where compounding pharmacists can make drug formulations on a smaller scale on demand, backed with technology that can analyze and predict demand on micro and macro levels. Read: Opportunities in compounding for community pharmacists “The best solutions have a small footprint, are scalable and preferably have a modular approach to manufacturing,” said Olaosebikan. “When you add in software that allows you to better understand your demand, then you have something that can really make a difference.” In 2018, Olaosebikan joined a federal trade mission to Africa that took her and the other delegates to 18 African cities. This allowed her to learn more about the health system problems on the continent and put her in front of decision makers. For example, she learned that seasonal flare-ups of illnesses such as cholera or even diarrhea would force certain countries to buy huge volumes of medication within short periods of time. “So they would need a rush order and buy from the U.K. and the cost would be astronomical,” Olaosebikan said. “This is why I got this idea for on-demand manufacturing. And with our software’s built-in predictive algorithm, we can tell nations that a particular medication is experiencing high demand or maybe supply chain problems and it won’t be easily available in nine months, so get yourselves ready.” Read: Young Leader in Pharmacy Khalid Garba Mohammed, Ph.D.: "Never let anyone tell you or make you feel you can’t do it." Her Africa tour subsequently led her to the U.K., where she visited Cambridge University and made connections in the science and engineering departments. “All these have resulted in a lot of good leads for partnerships.” The early-stage goal for Kemet is to bring Kembox and its proprietary software to Africa. Olaosebikan said she’s working with potential partners in Botswana, Mauritius and Kenya. Kemet’s initial focus in these countries will be on simple, small-molecule formulations, said Olaosebikan. Read: 'Representation matters': Pharmacist pens book featuring real Black princesses to inspire daughter “In some cases, it could be as simple as an oral rehydration solution—something as simple as Pedialyte,” she said. “It astounds me to think that in some countries, people don’t have access to Pedialyte or something similar.” As a company led by Canadian-trained pharmacist, Kemet will bring stringent compounding and manufacturing standards to the countries that use its systems and technologies, she said. While she is currently seeking venture partners, Olaosebikan continues to fund Kemet partly through sales from her KemNet online platform. “This is my childhood dream, to somehow be part of the solution to health injustices that disproportionately affect people of colour in poor countries,” said Olaosebikan. “There are so many foreign aid organizations doing so many good things today, yet people in these countries still don’t have access to some of the most basic drugs. I’m hoping to change that through what I’m doing today.” Read: Andrew Schonbe wins for Business Innovation at Pharmacy Practice + Business Awards

'Weird epiphany': Pharmacist fulfilling childhood dream with her innovative solutions to medication shortages

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