Mobilizing and adapting pharmacy services for disaster response: learning from the Japanese mobile pharmacy model

Essential medicines are a vital component of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals to “ensure access to safe, effective, quality, and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all.” [1] Medicines are one cornerstone of human development and are a basic human right, as their rational consumption can reduce morbidity and mortality rates and enhance quality of life. However, dramatic gaps in regular access to medicines persist during disasters and emergencies. Disaster events, such as floods, earthquakes, or wildfires, pose a significant threat to access to essential medicines and pharmacy services globally. Disasters, including those caused by global climate change [2], cause significant disturbances to health systems, including increased demand for pharmaceuticals and health professionals and disruptions to on-time pharmaceutical procuring [2]. The traditional brick-and-mortar pharmacy model is inherently vulnerable to disruption during crises, as these events can render fixed healthcare infrastructure inaccessible or non-functional. Consequently, displaced or isolated populations may be left without essential medications and pharmaceutical care, compromising patient health particularly for individuals managing chronic conditions or requiring acute treatments for common conditions. In this commentary, we provide background information on mobile pharmacies and present a mobile pharmacy case study from Japan where they were most recently deployed in the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan disaster response.