Molnlycke Health Care mag 2015

MÖLNLYCKE
HEALTH CARE
MAGAZINE
TURNING GREEN
How traffic lights are helping us
to reduce our use of chemicals
BIG IN AMERICA
Why we are making more of our
products available directly to patients
across the US
EUREKA MOMENTS
The search for the next generation
of life-changing products
“Any burn injury is hard to overcome,
mentally as well as physically.”
J.R. Martinez
2015
SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS
SUSTAINABLE LIFE
2

CONTENTS
1 Sustainable business, sustainable life
A foreword by CEO Richard Twomey
7 A global conversation
How employee feedback is shaping our strategy
9 Getting the safety habit
Factory teams lead the way
to higher safety standards
13 Problem solved
Looking for the next generation
of life-changing products
15 Making a positive difference
A new breakthrough in Negative
Pressure Wound Therapy
17 Joining forces
Supporting charities with people, time and money
29 Turning the lights green
Traffic lights are helping us reduce
our use of chemicals
31 Tailor-made for customers
Our customised surgical packs
are a hit with clinicians
34 Keeping it personal
J.R. Martinez tells how wound care
helped him turn his life around
37 Roads less travelled
Rethinking how we transport goods to reduce CO2
41 Working together to deliver the best
How we build strong relationships
with our suppliers
44 Working responsibly, living by our code
Our ethical Code of Conduct
informs everything we do
45 Strength in diversity
Our workforce is as varied
as the communities we serve
49 The customer voice
Listening is the heart of
good product development
51 One world of healthcare
Sharing our wound care expertise
from Brazil to China
A PASSION FOR SOCIAL
RESPONSIBILITY
Being ethical is not only part
of our DNA as a company –
it is essential for long-term
business success, says our
Director of Environment,
Health and Safety.
GOING THE
EXTRA MILE
A visit to our Malaysian
factories shows how good
working conditions are
helping to build a highly
productive workforce,
which is focused on quality.
25
WAR ON WASTE
We reuse and recycle
everything we can, from
packaging to microscopic
flecks of silver, in our drive
to reduce waste.
35
GETTING CLOSER
TO PATIENTS
We are making more of our
products available directly to
patients – including through
CVS, one of America’s largest
pharmacy chains.
3 21
FOREWORD
SUSTAINABLE
BUSINESS,
SUSTAINABLE LIFE
At Mölnlycke Health Care, we believe that a sustainable
business has its customers and their needs at its core.
As a world-leading provider of single-use surgical and wound care products, we can only be
successfulbylisteningtoourcustomersandunderstandingtheirneeds.AsaSwedishcompany,
we understand that our customers have high expectations of us in terms of sustainability.
Our passion for meeting our customers’ needs and expectations drives our appetite for
innovation, our focus on quality and our approach to corporate responsibility. Our sustain-
ability approach is fundamental to that. It is why the 2015 edition of Mölnlycke Health Care
magazine is subtitled Sustainable business, sustainable life.
Our business will only be sustainable if we innovate to meet customers’ needs. Listening
to what customers want has led to innovations such as our revolutionary Negative Pressure
Wound Therapy products – as you will see in the article on page 15. Our focus on customer
needs is also why we will be offering seven of our advanced wound care products through CVS
Health pharmacies in the US (page 35). It is inherent in our approach to training clinicians in
developingcountriessuchasChina,BrazilandSaudiArabiainthelatesttechniquesforwound
management (page 51).
Our sustainability approach and focus on customer needs have enabled us to develop
our reputation for quality too. Our customers want our products to be safe, effective and
sustainable. So we set rigorous standards for our products for ourselves – and for our suppliers
(page 42).
But beyond our reputation for quality, one of the trends I observed when I joined the company
was the increasing requirement for our sustainability approach to be recorded and outlined.
We have strict standards and policies for preventative health and safety (page 9) – an approach
that is particularly evident at our factory in Malaysia (page 21), which is leading the way.
The company has also numerous initiatives to prevent harm to the environment – whether
to eliminate potentially harmful chemicals from our products (page 29) or keep waste to a
minimum (page 25). Our appetite for sustainability goes hand in hand with our customers’
desire for us to make savings. Efficient supply chain management reduces our costs and brings
us closer to our customers – while keeping our carbon footprint low (page 37).
Although the increased formality of our sustainability approach reflects our response to
customer needs, corporate social responsibility has always mattered to us. We are proud that
our relationship with our global charity partner, Operation Smile, (page 17), has now lasted
for more than ten years.
As a company, we have always thrived by listening to our customers and learning from what
they tell us in order to continuously improve what we do. Mölnlycke Health Care magazine is
testamenttothat.PleasekeepengagingwithusviayourusualMölnlyckeHealthCarecontact,
or on Facebook or Twitter.
Richard Twomey
Chief Executive Officer
MÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE
3 4

A PASSION
FOR SOCIAL
RESPONSIBILITY
At Mölnlycke Health Care, we are passionate about making life better
for patients and customers – and social responsibility is in the company’s
DNA. Anders Karlsson, the Global Director for Environment, Health
and Safety and for Business Process Excellence, explains what this
means for him and for the company.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
65

For Anders and for Mölnlycke Health Care,
having a sustainable business means playing
the long game. “You cannot expect to be in
business for more than a couple of years
without being socially responsible. Our
products have to be safe for patients and cus-
tomers.Wemustalsobeethicalandlookafter
the health and safety of our employees, both
inourfactoriesandouroffices.Ifyoutakethat
to its logical conclusion, we also need to play
anactiveroleinthecommunitythroughbeing
socially responsible as a company.”
The environmental side is personal for
Anders. Like many Swedes, he feels a close
connection to the countryside. “I grew up on
Gotland, an island in the middle of the Baltic
Sea. Gotland has long sandy beaches and is a
verypopularplacefortouristsduringsummer.
But during the early nineties, the Baltic Sea
had a huge algae problem, thanks to overuse
of fertilisers. You could not bathe in the sea
because it was poisonous.
“Industry can wreak havoc on the environ-
ment.Solookingaftertheenvironmentmakes
good business sense in the long term. There
is a close connection with the next genera-
tion, too. They need us to consider our CO2
emissions and how we manage waste from
our factories.”
Passionate about quality
Anders takes a similarly people-focused
approach to Business Process Excellence,
his other role. “I am passionate about quality.
We make products for people, and we have to
have rigorous processes to do that properly.
Every process we have in the company – from
ensuring the health and safety of our employ-
ees,toassessingsuppliersortestingthesafety
of our products – comes down to quality.”
He has seen what can happen when you do
not follow processes. “Back in 1991, long
before I came to Mölnlycke Health Care,
I worked in a nuclear power plant, where
safety was paramount. My mentor there was
an extraordinary man – and he taught me a
lot.Butoneday,hefailedtofollowtheproper
processes for decompressing the enclosure
of the reactor. The difference in pressure
between inside and outside dragged him
into some machinery and he was killed. I
think of him often. That is why I have made
it my life’s work to prevent accidents and
protect people.”
Doing the right thing
Anders is not alone at Mölnlycke Health Care
in his passion for humanity. “In the company,
we have a saying: ‘Life – proud to be part of
it’, because we recognise that everything we
do,whoeverweare,hasanimpactonpeople’s
lives.Thatiswhy–rightfromthebeginningof
productdevelopment–wethinkaboutpatient
safety and the impact on the environment.”
He goes on to connect the corporate cul-
ture to its Swedish heritage: “Our company
values – passion, learning and integrity – are
all about doing the right thing. For exam-
ple, we treat our suppliers absolutely fairly.
But we audit them regularly and we will not
work with people whose standards are not
good enough. That reflects our Swedishness
and our company culture.”
The fact that Mölnlycke Health Care is
Swedish also explains why none of this is new
for the company, as Anders says: “Swedes are
naturally interested in social responsibility
and the environment – and that extends out
around the world from our headquarters in
Gothenburg. We have had environmental
certification ISO 14001 since February 2002
and an Environment, Health and Safety pro-
gramme for several years.”
Meeting ethical standards
Every year, the company’s approach to social
responsibility becomes more and more for-
mal. “Nowadays, we are finding that custom-
ers are starting to expect us to have global
health and safety, ethical and environment
certificates for tenders,” says Anders. “If all
goes well, the company will achieve both
global ISO 14001 and 45001 certifications
by the end of 2017 – and we will be signing up
to the Ethical Trading Initiative code soon.”
Anders is enthusiastic about the company’s
futureasasociallyresponsiblebusiness.“The
factthatourcustomersareaskingforitmakes
us want to do even better. I am excited about
whatwecanachieveifweputourmindstoit.”
“I am in this job because I care about
people, I take a very personal view of social
responsibility – both because of my life
experience and because of what it means
to the company.”
Anders Karlsson
Above
Anders oversees safe working
on the factory floor.
Top and right
Anders’s commitment to
environmental and social
responsibility is rooted in his
upbringing on Gotland, an island
famous for its natural beauty.
All the paper
used in this
magazine is FSC
certified and
100% recycled
7 8
MÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

When Mölnlycke Health Care launched its
employee engagement survey in 2010, it was
a mainly office-based, white-collar event. By
2014, it had expanded to cover the company’s
entire global workforce – including more than
4,000 blue-collar factory employees from
Finland to Malaysia.
Achieving this was no small undertaking.
With so many of our people working on
production lines, or as sales reps out on the
road, getting everyone’s feedback is not
always easy. It meant translating the survey
into more than 40 languages and creating a
tablet-friendly version so that everyone could
access it. We also made sure everyone had
time to complete the questionnaire during
working hours.
But Maarten van Beek, Executive Vice
President of Human Resources and
Corporate Communications, is in no
doubt that the extra effort was worthwhile:
“Our people are our greatest assets and our
best ambassadors. What they do comes out
in the quality of the products and services
we provide and the outcomes we help to
achieve for patients. That is why it is so
important that everyone who works for us is
engaged and motivated, from the shop floor
to global HQ.”
A huge response
The decision to expand the survey was
rewarded with a huge response – no fewer
than 98 percent of employees completed
the questionnaire. “It is amazing that so
many people wanted to be involved,” says
Maarten. “The response alone suggests that
our employees are enthusiastic about their
work. But you can also see this in the results:
86 percent of people say they are proud to
work for the company and 90 percent feel
that their jobs are meaningful.”
Informing global strategy
There were some issues that needed tackling,
as Maarten explains: “Where people were
less certain was around the company’s
overall strategy and how their work connects
with that.”
Since the survey, Mölnlycke Health Care
has launched a new global strategy for the
next five years to 2020. The company has
also introduced new High Performance
Behaviours, a set of standards designed to
help employees to become even better at
what they do.
Maarten is confident that these help to
explain how their work fits with the compa-
ny’s overall direction: “People have more
clarity now. Although we are going through
a period of change, which can be difficult,
we know more about where we are going as
a company and what is expected of us as
individual employees.”
Local insights
As well as global and strategic insights, the
survey also provides detailed feedback at
country level which helps local managers
to support their employees and improve the
way they work.
For Corinne Savestre, Human Resources
Director in France, the survey is a key oppor-
tunity to engage with a team of around 180
sales reps and office employees. “The results
give us important insights. For example,
the 2014 survey showed that 95 percent of
our people know what is expected of them.
That tells me that our communication and
line management structures are working,
which is important when many employees
are constantly on the road.
“It helps us to start a conversation, under-
stand what is happening with our people
and what they need to help them to be
their best. Line managers hold follow-up
meetings with each team to talk about any
issues raised and find solutions. For exam-
ple, in 2014 stress emerged as an issue for
some employees. So we set up a working
group to examine why this was happening
and what extra support we could offer. As a
result, we have adjusted some work patterns
and provided a professional counselling
service that employees can call with work
or personal issues 24/7.”
A GLOBAL
CONVERSATION
A great company is the sum of all its people – which is why we
go the extra mile to find out what our employees think, on five
continents and in more than 40 languages.
“86% of people say
they are proud to work
for the company and
90% feel that their jobs
are meaningful.”
Maarten Van Beek
9 10
MÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT

Health and safety coordinator Marcia
Norris knew she had achieved something
when she walked into the Wiscasset, USA,
factory without her safety glasses. Several
employees immediately reminded her to
put them on.
Although Marcia’s role does not strictly
require protective eyewear, the factory’s
health and safety team had decided they
should be worn by all employees and in
all areas – and Marcia was no exception.
It was a sign that health and safety had gone
beyond process and procedure to become
part of everyday thinking. “I was more
than happy to be reminded,” says Marcia,
“knowing that health and safety aware-
ness had become such a habit among my
colleagues. It reflects our commitment to
high standards across the board.”
USA: Doing it for the team
The Wiscasset health and safety team is
made up of employees from across the
factory, including managers and production
employees. Supported by Marcia, they meet
regularly to review performance, discuss
ideas and decide actions.
This joint effort is reaping rewards.
Between 2012 and 2014 the number of
lost-time accidents (LTAs) – accidents
that result in time away from work – at the
factory fell from four to two. In the same
period, the number of lost-time days (LTDs)
– all the individual sick days caused by acci-
dents – fell from 454 to 131.
Watching the near misses
Similar teams have been set up in all
Mölnlycke Health Care factories around
the world, helping to drive higher stand-
ards and prevent accidents. Key to this is a
focus on “near miss” reporting – spotting
potential accidents before they happen.
“We encourage everyone to speak up if
they see something they think could cause
a hazard,” explains Anders Karlsson,
Global Director for Environment, Health
and Safety. “There is a genuine ‘no blame’
culture. We would much rather know
about a problem early, before it turns into
an accident or anyone gets hurt.”
Finland: Turning ideas into reality
A near miss reported by an employee at
our Mikkeli factory in Finland is a good
example. Jarkko Tujula, the factory’s
health, safety and environment specialist,
explains: “My colleague Heikki Heiskanen
saw a lamination reel fall two metres on to
the floor where he had just walked. It was
pushed out of place by a fork-lift truck load-
ing reels from the other side of the storage
unit. No one was hurt – but any kind of close
call is one too many. A simple vertical bar
installation now prevents the same accident
ever happening again.”
This solution has been adopted at all
Mölnlycke Health Care factories worldwide,
wherever we have this kind of storage unit.
“Good ideas are shared across the company,
so when one of our sites makes a safety
improvement, it can be applied to others
around the world,” says Anders Karlsson.
“We also encourage people to put good
ideas on Sharepoint, the online file-sharing
platform, so everyone can see them.” This
bottom-up approach to health and safety is
a big part of the company’s Environment,
Health and Safety programme for the next
two years.
“It was a sign that health and safety had gone
beyond process and procedure to become part
of everyday thinking.”
Marcia Norris
Below
An idea from an employee
in Finland led to extra safety
protection on storage racks, which
has now been adopted worldwide.
Opposite
US Health and Safety Coordinator
Marcia Norris empowers her
colleagues to take ownership
of health and safety.
GETTING THE
SAFETY HABIT
Spotting potential accidents before they happen is becoming
second nature for teams in our factories – who are now leading
a drive to embed high standards of preventative health and
safety across the company.
12
MÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE HEALTH AND SAFETY
11

As part of its global Environment, Health
and Safety programme, Mölnlycke Health
Care has set ambitious objectives to be
achieved by 2017, including:
• No more than two LTAs per million
working hours
• No more than 20 LTDs per million
working hours
• 75 percent of near misses to be
corrected within one month.
Achieving common goals
“While we expect all our operations to
meet these targets, it is up to them how
they achieve them,” explains Anders. Each
site will also be asked to identify their top
local priorities and to set targets to deliver
them. “Our factories are spread across three
continents and many time zones. So it is
right that we recognise local cultures and
circumstances and work with our people in
each location to achieve common goals.”
Thailand: Raising the standard
Mölnlycke Health Care’s factories in
Thailand have recently been certified
with OSHA 18001 – the sixth of our loca-
tions to achieve the international stand-
ard for health and safety management.
Assistant Safety and Occupational Health
Manager Khwanchai Yiamchaiyaphum was
part of the team that spent nine months
working towards certification. “We looked
at everything from machinery and tools to
working environments, and made changes
wherever necessary,” he says. “We also
visited one of the company’s Malaysian
factories to learn from them, as they had
already achieved the standard. I feel proud
that now we can say with certainty to col-
leagues, customers and suppliers that you
will be safe when you work here or visit us.”
Aiming for ISO 45001
Mölnlycke Health Care’s aim is to achieve
OSHA 18001 at all of its 11 global sites by the
end of 2017, before the standard is replaced
by the new ISO 45001. “That would mean
we would automatically upgrade to the new
standard as a company, which would be a
great achievement,” says Anders Karlsson.
Czech Republic
quieter carts
win hearts
When you work in a factory, you expect
some noise. But if the decibels go above
a certain level, it can be irritating and
even unhealthy. At our Karviná factory,
several employees reported that the
carts used for transporting finished
goods were so noisy that it disturbed
their concentration.
“When we investigated it, we found out
that the problem came from the metal
wheels, 200 of them in total on 50 carts,”
explains Health and Safety Engineer
Simona Janickova. “Technicians tested
eight alternative types of wheels
but none of them were right. So our
suppliers custom-made new wheels
just for us, with exchangeable bearings
and a rim made from gum, which is
much quieter. Everyone is happy with
the new solution – and the calmer
work environment.”
Opposite page and left
Health and Safety Engineer
Simona Janickova at work.
Above and below
Employees at Karvina are happy
with the new quieter cart wheels
which have eliminated the
factory’s noise problem.
Last year there
were less than 2
lost time accidents
per 1,000,000
working hours
13 14
MÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE HEALTH AND SAFETY

The test of a great innovation is that you
cannot imagine life without it. From
astonishing discoveries such as the inter-
net to the humble washing machine,
innovations weave themselves into the fabric
of our lives, so we do not know how we would
manage without them.
At Mölnlycke Health Care, we are proud
that some of our ideas have become a part
of life for millions of people. Our wound care
dressingswerethefirsttousetheconformable
properties of soft silicone to form a gentle,
easily removed adhesive – in the form of
Safetac® technology.
A revolution in wound care
Safetac caused a quiet revolution in wound
care. Before we invented it, it was very dif-
ficult to remove a dressing from a chronic
wound without causing pain, discomfort
and, quite possibly, further damage. Now
millions of patients not only heal faster, they
are also released from the fear and dread of
dressing changes.
Our newest innovations for 2015 carry on this
mission to reduce pain and improve healing.
For example, Exufiber dressings will bring
relief to patients with high-exuding wounds,
such as ulcers and acute wounds, which have
traditionally been harder to manage.
New fibre technology
Exufiber’s unique Hydrolock technology
uses strong polyvinyl alcohol fibres that
mesh together mechanically, like a fine wire
net. This not only helps to absorb and retain
exudate for a moist healing environment, it
also gives high tensile strength, so dressings
can be removed in one piece. The result is
faster dressing changes, less pain, better
healing and less risk of contamination.
What lies behind Safetac, Exufiber and all
our other innovations is a desire to improve
lives and meet customer and patient needs.
Inspired by these principles, Mölnlycke
Health Care is now refocusing on innova-
tion to ensure that we continue to create
transformative new products into the future.
The next generation of ideas
This drive will be led by Barry McBride, our
new Executive Vice-President of Innovation
and Technology, who has a 20-year back-
ground in developing, making and marketing
medical devices. His plan is to create a hub
for ideas within the company. He will draw
on a wide range of talents, not just inventors
and scientists, but also the people who make
and sell our products – and, crucially, the
customers who give us their feedback.
“By joining up these different groups, we
will be able to better spot those ideas which
will make a big difference to customers and
patients,” he says.
What our customers want
“We will focus on the product areas and
issues that really matter to our customers. For
example, we will have a new team devoted
to finding solutions for hospital-acquired
conditions, a big concern for healthcare
providers today.
“Another priority is looking for crossovers
and synergies between our wound care and
surgical products. For example, could we
use some of Safetac’s adhesive properties
to improve our surgical drapes? Perhaps if
we share knowledge and learning, there’s a
great new product there that is just waiting
to emerge.
“Once we have found our star products of
the future, we will focus on making them
happen. That means we will do fewer
research and development projects but
really follow through on the product ideas
we think will fly.”
Proud to be an innovator
Barry is proud of his new job and the oppor-
tunity it gives him to make a difference. “I
have worked in other industries and enjoyed
them. But in healthcare, you get the chance to
make a positive contribution to society and
humanity, while also creating success and
employment.Thatissomethingveryspecial.”
PROBLEM
SOLVED
Over the years, our innovations have improved
the lives of millions of patients around the world.
Now we are drawing on this inspiration in a drive to
find the next generation of transformative surgical
and wound care products.
Below
Two of our newest wound care innovations,
Mepilex®
XT (below) and Exufiber®
(bottom),
which absorbs exudate through its unique
Hydrolock technology.
Barry McBride finds a solution.
15 16
MÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE INNOVATION

For two decades, Negative Pressure
Wound Therapy (NPWT) has been the
gold-standard treatment for highly
exuding, complex wounds. By drawing out
fluids and stimulating blood flow with a
pump, NPWT promotes healing. But until
recently, the therapy was also associated
with skin stripping around the wound – and
pain and stress for patients.
It was when Mölnlycke Health Care in-
troduced the Avance system with Safetac
technology that people began to see NPWT
in a new light. Tissue Viability Lead Nurse
Simon Hall is responsible for overseeing
the management of complex wounds in
adults and children at University Hospitals
Bristol NHS Foundation Trust in the UK:
“Before, the film dressings which affix the
pump to the wound were prone to excoriat-
ing people’s skin. The adhesive nature of the
film and the frequency of dressing changes
could make removing a dressing incredibly
painful and upsetting. Now we have the op-
tion of Safetac film with the Avance system
– and the outcomes are very positive.”
The Avance system makes the biggest dif-
ference during dressing changes, as Simon
explains: “One of my patients is a young
boy with a recurrent skin disease. The
disease leads to large wounds that require
NPWT and dressing changes every three
or four days.”
“This young boy first developed significant
wounds when he was nine years old. He
found dressing changes so distressing that
we had to sedate him and take him to the
operating theatre. There were so many risks
associated with that – but because Avance
with Safetac was not available in our hos-
pital then, it was the only solution we had.”
Less painful dressing changes
“Now he is 12 and, due to disease progres-
sion, he has developed new wounds. This
time, dressing changes are easier and less
painful for him. Because we now use the
Safetac film with the Avance system, we
can change his dressings at his bedside. He
requires no sedation, no theatre time and
no theatre team. It is also significantly less
stressful for his parents, who previously
had to watch their child being sedated and
taken to theatre. Now he is up and about
quickly afterwards. His mood is better, he
eats and drinks more and he is much more
active – all of which leads to faster healing.
And the wound is exposed for less time, re-
ducing the risk of infection.”
Mölnlycke Health Care’s Avance system
with Safetac makes the transition from
hospital to the community easier too. “We
are able to discharge patients from hospital
earlier,” says Simon. “Patients feel confi-
dent about going home while still undergo-
ing NPWT. As they have been awake and
involved in their wound care, they know
what to expect – so they can be managed
more easily at home.”
A caring collaboration
Following the launch of Avance in the USA,
Mölnlycke Health Care is also now making
the Avance system available for patients in
the homecare market. Steve Atlay, Glob-
al Business Director for NPWT explains:
“We have set up a partnership with Apria
Healthcare, who care for patients in their
homes across America. Together we want
to change the way wounds are healed at
home.”
“By making Avance available for home use,
we know we can have an enormous impact
on patients’ quality of life,” says Steve.
“The Avance system really is changing the
way people think about NPWT. We are ex-
cited to be in a position to offer it across the
continuum of care.”
Early feedback from Apria’s clinicians
is very favourable: “Wound care nurses
and physicians find Safetac technology
incredibly easy to use,” says Jeff Johnson,
Vice President of Business Development
at Apria Healthcare. “They can reposition
Avance Film with Safetac easily – with no
loss of adhesion. And there is less waste as
it does not fold in on itself and get ruined.”
The patient experience is also very posi-
tive: “Safetac technology has only been
available here for a short while, and we are
already hearing stories of patients whose
lives have been transformed by it,” he
says. “Mölnlcyke
Health Care and
Apria Healthcare
represent the ide-
al collaboration of
healthcare exper-
tise in negative
pressure wound
therapy.”
With the Avance®
Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT) system, Mölnlycke
Health Care has transformed the experience of patients requiring negative
pressure. Now Avance is available to a new group of customers – patients in the
homecare setting in the United States, through our partner Apria Healthcare.
MAKING A
POSITIVE
DIFFERENCE
Tissue viability nurse
Simon Hall has seen
huge improvements
in comfort for patients
using the Avance NPWT
system with Safetac
technology (left).
17
18
MÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE HOMECARE

MölnlyckeHealthCarehaslongbeencommit-
tedtohelpingpeopleinneed,and2014marked
thetenthanniversaryofourinvolvementwith
our global charity partner Operation Smile, a
US-basedcharitythatoffersfreecleftpalatesur-
geryforchildrenindevelopingcountries.What
underpinsthesuccessofthatrelationship–just
aswiththeothercharitiesandorganisationswe
support–isasharedethos,commongoalsand
adeepcommitmentonbothsidestoimproving
people’s lives.
“ThesetypesofinitiativesarepartofMölnlycke
Health Care’s DNA,” says Rob Rayl, General
ManagerUS,whositsontheboardofDEBRA,
another of our significant charity partners.
“Supporting charities and community organ-
isations is an extension of our commitment
to ensuring that every patient who can benefit
from our products gets that opportunity. It is
also demonstrably the right thing to do for the
healthcareprofessionals,patientsandcustom-
ers we are privileged to serve. I believe that
focusing on social responsibility as well as on
our commercial priorities is good for
everyone involved.”
There are the obvious practical benefits:
people who might not otherwise be able to
access medical care get the help they need,
whether that is through Operation Smile or
through any of the other initiatives Mölnlycke
Health Care supports around the world
(see map on page 19). But there are also the
benefits to our employees – and by extension
to the company as a whole.
“Having the opportunity to invest personally
in these projects is a way for our employees to
getclosertopatientsandend-users,”saysRob.
“Ithelpsustoseethatourworkismeaningful.
We learn from it, too, both in the sense of
understanding the patient journey, and in
terms of our people bringing new solutions
back to the business. When we share our
experiences with colleagues, the pride and
the passion we have for helping others really
shine through.”
JOINING FORCES
“Supporting charities and community
organisations is an extension of our
commitment to ensuring that every
patient who can benefit from our
products gets that opportunity.”
Rob Rayl
By committing time, energy and expertise as well as resources,
Mölnlycke Health Care is building strong links with charities and
community organisations around the world as part of its deep
commitment to social responsibility.
Operation Smile provides life-
changing surgery for thousands
of children like these around
the world.
19
20
COMMUNITY

Burn Camps
Burn Camps are an invaluable resource for
burns survivors, giving them a therapeutic
and recreational space where they can
come together to share their experiences
and simply relax and have fun. Mölnlycke
Health Care supports Burn Camps across
the US, both by providing products such
as beach towels, lip balm and water bottles
and by giving employees the opportunity
to volunteer, including as camp counsellors
and mentors.
DEBRA
Mölnlycke Health Care supports the work
of DEBRA in helping people with the painful
skin condition epidermolysis bullosa (EB).
In the US, we support a range of initiatives
including DEBRA’s monthly Wound Care
Clearinghouse, which distributes essential
wound care supplies to people in financial
difficulty, and the charity’s Family Crisis Fund.
UK
In the UK, the Mölnlycke Health Care
communications team completed a 24-mile
canoeing challenge, braving rapids and
tricky conditions, to raise money for DEBRA.
MóvilSolidario
Employees are collecting old mobile
phones in support of the MóvilSolidario
project, which uses the money generated to
support scientific research into Sanfilippo
syndrome and tackle world hunger.
AMREF: Stand Up For African Mothers
For every BARRIER®
EasyWarm®
blanket
sold, Mölnlycke Health Care in Italy donated
EUR 1 to the Stand Up For African Mothers
project, which aims to tackle high levels
of maternal mortality by training 15,000
obstetricians in Africa.
Facing Africa
UK-based account manager Heather Stead
joined the Facing Africa team on a mission
to Ethiopia. The charity performs complex
facial reconstructive surgery on victims of
noma, a devastating gangrenous disease
caused by malnutrition and poor hygiene.
Mölnlycke Health Care also provides
support for the charity’s regular biannual
missions in the form of surgical products.
ABIO and Cooperativa Radici nel Fiume
Colleagues in Italy supported a local
charity, ABIO, which trains volunteers to
work with children who are spending time
in hospitals and their families, by buying
Christmas gifts from the charity. Funds
raised during a Christmas lottery went to
the Cooperativa, which helps young people
with learning difficulties to develop the
skills they need to find work.
THE VOLUNTEERS’ STORY
Environment and Quality Coordinator Cristina Angulo and QA
laboratory team leader Niina Paunonen joined an Operation
Smile mission in Asunción, Paraguay, in March 2014.
Middle and bottom
Niina Paunonen and Christina Angulo
with some of the children they helped
during their Operation Smile mission
in Paraguay. Both women are eager
to work with the charity again.
For both Cristina and Niina, the decision
to apply for the mission – which delivered
life-changing surgery to 119 patients,
both children and adults – was driven by
a desire to make a difference. “I felt very
strongly that the patients we would be
treating deserved the chance to find their
way in life without being discriminated
against for their appearance,” says Niina.
“I waited three years to be accepted, so it
was my dream for a long time!”
The experience has clearly left a lasting
impression. “I work in finance, and I had
never been on the front line before,”
says Cristina. “It was amazing to see our
products in action. The team were using
our gloves, and tried out our drapes and
gowns too! It really brought home to me
just how important it is to be safe and
secure and comfortable in a demanding
working environment.”
For Niina, watching the Operation Smile
team at work highlighted the importance
of working towards a shared goal. “I was
amazed by how quickly this group of
volunteers formed themselves into a team.
They all brought their different experiences
and perspectives, but they came with
passion and they were all completely
focused on making that mission a success.
There is definitely a lesson in there!”
Both agree that they would strongly
recommend the Operation Smile
experience to their colleagues – and that
they would welcome the opportunity to join
another mission themselves. For Niina, it
has rekindled her desire to explore more
of the medical side of Mölnlycke Health
Care’s business and, in her words, “to
move closer to the patients.” Cristina
echoes the sentiment. “Lots of companies
give products or money to charity,” she
says. “But there are not so many that also
give you the opportunity to actually do
something that improves people’s lives.
I learned such a lot, and it makes me
happy and proud to be working here.”
How our people and our products are
making a difference to communities
and individuals around the world.
Operation Smile
2014 marked the 10th anniversary of
Mölnlycke Health Care’s involvement
with Operation Smile. In total, we have
donated nearly 1,400,000 pairs of Biogel®
surgical gloves as well as contributing to
the cost of missions. To date, nearly 40 of
our people have taken part in Operation
Smile missions around the world.
COMMUNITY
21 22

GOING
THE EXTRA
MILE
A wide range of practical initiatives combined with a
deep commitment to ethical employment practices is
creating a dynamic, high-quality working environment
at our factories in Malaysia.
At Mölnlycke Health Care’s manufacturing
sites in Malaysia, some 1,900 employees,
94 percent of them blue collar, work across
three locations – at Kulim, Batang Kali
and Kuala Ketil – making Biogel gloves for
export worldwide. Together with the local
management team, HR Manager Ramesh
Ayaroo is responsible for ensuring that they
are all treated fairly and in line with our Code
of Conduct.
Compliancewithglobalstandards,bothinternal
(liketheCodeofConduct)andexternal–includ-
ing a comprehensive range of ISO standards,
the OHSAS 18001 standard for occupational
health and safety and the standards set by the
International Labour Organization – as well
as local labour laws is vitally important to the
smoothrunningofthefactoriesandtheethical
treatment of employees.
“Everything we do in our Malaysian factories
isbasedonwritten,documentedprocedures,”
explainsRamesh,“andwearecontinuallywork-
ing to improve. For example, we have recently
beenlookingintoSA8000,anewglobalstand-
ard for social accountability in the workplace,
and feel confident that we could put together
a successful application for certification.”
Acultureofquality
Important though it is, compliance is far
from being the whole story. As Ramesh says:
“Ifyouwanttoattractandretainthebestpeople,
and create a working culture that promotes
high productivity and high quality, you need
to go further, and give people the opportunity
to make a difference.”
Excellent facilities and conditions form
an important part of the package for
employees. Salaries are highly competitive,
and all employees on the factory floor are
provided with appropriate clothing, which is
maintained by the in-house laundry.
“Weprovideareasforresting,changingrooms,
prayer rooms and a cafeteria,” says Ramesh.
“Thereisalsotransportforworkerslivingoutside
thearea,andfreemedicalcare–includingregular
check-upsforthosehandlingchemicals.”
Employeeconsultation
A strong joint consultative committee ensures
that employees at all levels have a voice.
Indeed, a number of recent changes in the
factory have come about as a direct result of
requestschannelledthroughthecommittee.As
Ramesh explains: “We have recently adapted
thecleanroomentrancechangingfacilitiesfor
pregnant women.
“We have also introduced new equipment to
automate some of the more repetitive tasks
and carried out a review of various employee
initiatives, including our wellness pro-
gramme.” Regular employee engagement
surveys also help to highlight any issues,
and follow-up action plans are carefully
implemented and monitored.
FOCUS ON MALAYSIA
24
23

Other initiatives have focused specifically
on health and safety, as Safety, Health and
Environment Manager Segaran Veerayah
explains. “Everyone knows that health and
safety is a high priority,” he says. “That starts
rightatthetop.Thereisastrongcommitment
from our general manager and the rest of the
senior management team which includes
playing an active role in our monthly factory
audits. You see the impact every day – people
feel valued, so they are happy and proud to
come to work.”
Asafeworkplace
With robust procedures in place throughout
thefactory,theteamisnowfocusingontrying
to further reduce the number of accidents on
the factory floor – which stands at four last
year compared with a typical annual figure
of around 20 in the mid-1990s.
“Through regular workstation assessments
and ongoing audits, we are continually
identifying areas for improvement,” says
Segaran. “We are also building a culture
where people accept and share responsibility
for what happens. There is as much to learn
from a ‘near miss’ as from an accident that
actually happens. Now we are encouraging
people to report these incidents, so that we
can investigate, identify the cause and come
up with an action plan to stop it happening
again. There is no blame – it is all part of
building a strong, safety-conscious culture.”
This approach reflects the broader working
culture across the whole of Mölnlycke Health
Care worldwide. Employees at all levels are
encouraged to develop personally and profes-
sionally, and to realise their potential.
Careeropportunities
Indeed, both Ramesh and Segaran are
long-standing employees, whose careers
have spanned many different areas of
the business and allowed them to pro-
gress within the company. Segaran has
worked his way up from lab technician
to a management role across all three
Malaysian sites.
“We work hard to give people opportunities
at every level,” says Ramesh. “Around 70 per-
cent of our vacancies are filled internally. We
have lots of examples of people coming in as
operators and being promoted to supervisory
and managerial roles.”
The impact of that is felt in retention rates
– Ramesh estimates that about half the
employees across the three sites have been
with the company for at least five years. But
it is also obvious in the atmosphere. “This
is an environment that engages people and
motivatesthem,”saysRamesh.“Whenpeople
feel they are making a difference, they will
give their best.”
Top left
Every box of Biogel gloves is quality
checked before shipping.
Bottom left
Segaran Veerayah is proud of the
factory’s very low accident rate.
Above right
Syarifah Mohd Mokhtar oversees
production of surgical gloves.
Flexible shift work helps her balance
her roles as employee and mother.
“When people feel they are
making a difference, they
will give their best.”
Ramesh Ayaroo
Process controller
Syarifah Mohd Mokhtar
has worked at Mölnlycke
Health Care’s Kulim
factory for 11 years.
“I work a six-day week, on three
rotating shifts. Typically, that means
working 56 hours a week, including
eight hours’ scheduled overtime.
Working shifts means I can spend
time with my three children when I
get home – that is important to me
as a working mother. My supervisor is
also understanding when I need time
off for a school visit or if one of the
children is sick. I get 23 days’ annual
leave and very good medical care.
“I am very happy here. I used to
work in an electronics factory and
when it closed down, my supervisor
encouraged me to apply to Mölnlycke
Health Care as he had heard good
things about the company. I was
surprised when I joined because the
atmosphere was very different. In my
old factory it was all about machines;
here, it is all about people. There is
a lot of care and attention paid to
safety and training, so there are
fewer accidents.
“I am in charge of the stock-keeping
unit, so I get a handover report
from the night-shift team then
brief the morning team. Our output
during an eight-hour shift is 54 lots
of surgical gloves, each almost 84
kilograms in weight, which translates
to almost 4,700 pieces per lot. It is
hard but satisfying work and I realise
how important it is for us to do our
job well.
“At one point, I briefly left the
company for another job, but after
six months I returned because the
benefits here were so much better.
I feel respected and valued. We are
trained and developed, and I am
a real-life example of how we can
rise within the ranks. In January
2015 I was promoted to the role
of manufacturing supervisor. It
means an increase in salary, but,
more importantly, my family and
my husband are proud of what I am
achieving here – and that makes me
very happy.”
Inspection operator Siti Haidah
Abdul Talib has worked at
Mölnlycke Health Care’s Kuala
Ketil factory for 14 years.
“I have been here for a long time, so
you can tell I must like my job! I am the
main wage earner in my family, and
we have three children so my salary
is very important to us. Before I joined
Mölnlycke Health Care, I used to work
in my village, making and selling kuih
[local cakes] to the neighbours.
“When I first started, I was apprehensive
because it was a big foreign-owned
factory, but it was a good decision.
The allowances, generous annual leave,
regular bonus, free medical care and
staff facilities are very good.
“I also like working here because I
feel appreciated. We get trained to do
our jobs well, and we are always told
where the products we make are going.
“As an inspection operator, I receive
the appropriate documentation.
Then I load the surgical gloves into
the machine to check that they are
up to our high standards. We look for
any defects before the gloves are sent
to the automatic packing machines.
It is important to work in a sterile
environment and we wear protective
gear supplied by the company,
to keep us and the products safe.
“I know how important my job is.
It gives me a sense of pride to think
that the gloves I am checking today
will be packed and shipped to other
countries around the world. Those
gloves will then be used during an
important operation that could save
someone’s life. My family is very proud
of my work and I am proud too: because
I do it well.”
“My old factory it was all
about machines; here,
it is all about people.”
Siti Haidah
6
OF OUR 11 SITES
HAVE OHSAS 18001
CERTIFICATION
FOCUS ON MALAYSIA
25 26

WAR ON
WASTE
Precious metal is not something you normally expect to find in
the recycling, unless you work at our Mikkeli factory in Finland
– where it is part of our mission to keep waste to a minimum.
WASTE REDUCTIONMÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE
2827

Top
An employee collecting waste plastic
ready for recycling.
Above
We collect and recycle almost all waste
material created during manufacturing.
Opposite page
Jarkko Tujula (pictured right) is proud
of his factory’s efforts to reuse or
recycle everything from packaging to
pallets in the drive to reduce waste.
Right
New strong thin cardboard in our boxes
saves 80 tonnes of material a year.
of our waste
is recycled
Along with the regular items such as paper,
plastic, glass and bio matter recycled at the
company’s factory in Mikkeli, there is one
rather special kind of material – silver.
If this sounds odd, there is a simple explan-
ation. Mikkeli is one of the sites where we
make Mepilex wound care dressings, which
use tiny amounts of silver in the foam layer
to promote faster healing. Any microscopic
flecks in the scraps left over after manufac-
turing are separated and collected for reuse.
The process is just one example of Mölnlycke
Health Care’s commitment to reduce waste
– wherever possible, we reuse it, recycle it
or burn it for energy, with landfill used only
as a last resort.
Reducing waste to landfill
At Mikkeli, this drive has resulted in a big
drop in total waste sent to landfill, from 20
kilograms per tonne of finished product in
2007 to less than 2.8 kilograms per tonne
in 2014 – a reduction of more than 85 per-
cent. During the same period, the amount
of hazardous waste also fell from around 13
kilograms per tonne of product to just over
5 kilograms.
The factory team reuse whatever they can
– for example, when materials are delivered
from suppliers, the company keeps the pallets
on which they arrived and reuses them to
transport products to customers.
“These measures demonstrate our integrity
when it comes to waste reduction, but they
alsomakepracticalsense,”saysJarkkoTujula,
the factory’s health, safety and environment
specialist. “It is good for the business, too,
as less waste ultimately means lower costs.”
On a company-wide level, we work with our
suppliers to prevent waste at source by reduc-
ing the amount of material that goes into our
products and packaging. For example, in the
recent “grammage down” project, the aim
was to reduce the amount of cardboard in
the boxes used to pack our finished products.
Designing waste out of the system
“This was quite a challenge,” explains
Materials and Packaging Development
Manager Anders Dahlberg. “We wanted to
reduce the amount of material but without
any loss of strength, so we had to change the
composition of the cardboard significantly.”
After some trial and error, the company now
uses a cardboard that is just as strong but is
made from a lot less material – 80 tonnes less
per year, which is equivalent to the weight of
50 medium-sized cars.
Cutting waste from production
Waste reduction can also go hand in hand
with improving quality. At the compa-
ny’s Toulouse factory in France, quality
tests showed that the top web paper
on some ProcedurePak® surgical kits was
tearing on opening.
“Even though this did not affect the sterility
of the product, we had to find a solution
to ensure the kits opened perfectly for our
customers,” explains Quality Manager
Mathilde Rousselet.
A project was set up to eliminate the root
cause of the problem by making changes to
the production process. This not only solved
the quality issue, it also led to a big reduction
in the amount of material wasted during pro-
duction, from 7,000 kilograms a year in 2012
to less than 70 kilograms in 2014.
“When materials are delivered from
suppliers, the company keeps the pallets
on which they arrived and reuses them to
transport products to customers.”
Jarkko Tujula
95%
WASTE REDUCTION
29 30

If you see the word phthalates, your first
question – after “How do you pronounce
it?” – will probably be: “What are they?”
But these little-known chemicals are
causing increasing concern. They are
thought to be potentially harmful to
pregnant women and their babies, as well as
to some animal life.
Phthalates are used as a softening agent in
a huge variety of common household items,
fromplasticcontainerstogardenhoses.There
is mounting evidence about their side effects
– yet very few of these chemicals have been
banned or restricted.
Going phthalate-free
They have, however, been eliminated from
all of Mölnlycke Health Care’s wound care
products and packaging. This is one of the
successes of the company’s traffic-light sys-
tem, which screens all materials we use for
potentially harmful chemicals.
Under the system, every material undergoes
a full composition analysis before we accept
it for use. We check every chemical identified
against official EU lists of hazardous chem-
icals and water pollutants. We also refer to
lists produced by the Swedish Environmental
Institute, as well as local chemical registers,
wherever our factories are based.
Identifying potential hazards
If anything is potentially harmful – for
example, if it contains more than 0.1 percent
by weight of any substance on the SVHC
(substances of very high concern) list con-
trolled under the EU’s REACH (Registration,
Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of
Chemicals) regulations – it is flagged as a red
light and we either replace it immediately
or work to find a greener alternative. If the
potentialharmissmallorweareunsureabout
a chemical and need to investigate further,
the material is classified amber. If no trace of
any harmful chemicals is found, the material
gets a green light.
Eliminating potential harm
By following this systematic process, the
company often goes beyond what is required
by law. For example, phthalates are legally
still allowed in plastic containers – but work
began to eliminate them from Mölnlycke
Health Care PVC materials some time ago.
Materials and Packaging Development
Manager Anders Dahlberg explains: “Having
researched them, we asked our suppliers to
replace them with safer alternatives. Now,
everything we produce in wound care is
phthalate-free.”
Removing solvent-based adhesives from
the wound care products we manufacture is
another chemical reduction success. Today,
only water-based and solvent-free adhesives
are used.
Cleaning without chemicals
At the company’s Oldham factory in the UK,
the mission to reduce the use of harmful
chemicals even extends to cleaning agents.
The factory produces Epaderm™ ointment
in large mixing vessels which need regular
cleaning and sterilisation.
“We replaced environmentally damaging
chemicals with a method using high-pres-
sure, high-temperature water sprays,” says
Environment and Quality Improvement
Manager Karl Bamford. “Now the cleaning
and sterilisation processes are entirely free
of chemicals.”
Any waste that does contain harmful chem-
icals is collected, barrelled up and safely
disposed of by specialist contractors at all
our factories worldwide.
“What is harmful for the environment may
also be harmful for patients,” says Anders
Dahlberg. “Reducing the use of harmful
chemicals goes hand in hand with our core
purpose as a company. It is just a natural
extension of our mission to prevent harm
and promote healing.”
Opposite
Anders Dahlberg manages the traffic
light system aimed at eliminating
harmful chemicals from our factories.
Below
We check every chemical used in our
products and production processes to
ensure it is safe to use.TURNING
THE LIGHTS
GREEN
A traffic-light system is helping Mölnlycke Health Care
to eliminate potentially harmful “red light” chemicals
from our products and processes.
We continuously
reduce our use of
hazardous chemicals
THE ENVIRONMENT
3231

ProcedurePak trays are a perfect example
of a straightforward idea that brings major
benefits to our customers.
“ProcedurePak trays offer so many
advantages,” says Global Marketing Manager
Anna Dahlberg. “There are cost savings and
efficiencyimprovementsforprocurementand
management. But perhaps the most striking
aspect is the difference they can make to
clinical staff.”
Quicker and safer
Now, instead of having to pick up 40 or
50 individual items, a nurse can pick up
a single colour-coded tray, with just one
expiry date, and be 100 percent confident
that it contains everything needed for a
particular procedure.
“That saves both time and packaging waste,
andreducesrisk,”saysAnna.“Inmanycases,
we can offer cost savings on materials too.”
Meeting customers’ needs
By listening to our customers, and working
closely alongside them, we can ensure
that ProcedurePaks are tailored to their
individual requirements.
“Our goal is to create trays that are both site-
specific – each hospital has its own way of
doing things – and procedure-specific, with
all the necessary components in one tray,”
says Anna.
Ouraccountmanagersandclinicalspecialists
spend a lot of time speaking to procurement
teams and clinicians – both nurses and
surgeons – to ensure that the trays fully meet
their needs. “We really believe this is the
way to deliver best value to our customers,”
says Anna.
Innovating to deliver
New technology is supporting this dialogue
and helping customers get the most out of
theirrelationshipwithMölnlyckeHealthCare.
The Moving Up app, is one example; another
is our tray configuration tool OPtimal, which
is designed to increase accuracy and speed
and maximise value.
“OPtimal offers instant access to more than
4,500 components, with images and all the
information needed to create a complete
tray,” says Anna. “It’s an incredibly useful
innovation. Before, we would have had to
make a manual record of the picking list, take
that away, design the tray and get sign-off.
Now that can all be done in the operating
theatre. It is much faster, and it is much
more accurate.”
Anotherinnovationthatishelpingtotrimcosts
and boost efficiency is the introduction of
colour-codingfortrays.“Thishelpscustomers
identify the correct tray more quickly,” says
Anna, “and eliminates the risk of picking and
opening the wrong tray. It also helps them
to manage their inventory more efficiently.”
The ProcedurePak team is now working to
expand the range of components, to give
customers even greater choice.
“One priority area is orthopaedics,” says
Anna. “We are particularly focusing on
replacement procedures such as hips and
knees, where there is an opportunity to
introduce customers to our recently launched
Pulse Lavage wound cleaning device.
We are also looking at adding our Mepilex
Border Post Op dressing, diathermy pencils
and skin staplers. This way, we can offer the
customer a more cost-effective solution, at
the same time as moving our products up the
value chain. It is a win-win.”
ProcedurePakpackage
demonstrating the colour
coding system.
Left
Employees assembling
customised ProcedurePaks.
The ready-to-use trays
save medical teams
time and money.
• Mölnlycke Health Care is the
European leader in custom
procedure trays with more
than 30 million trays produced
• Our customers can select from
over 4500 qualified components
• ProcedurePak trays are used in
more than 4.5 million procedures
every year.
The Facts:
ProcedurePak Trays
ProcedurePak Green Contents:
BNS laparoscopy drape, Op-Tape, tube holder, wire hook l electrode, tray, kidney bowl, vicryl, instrument cleaner, maternity pad, 3 x bowls, insuff tube, hepa filter, 20 x gauze swab,
10 x gauze round, table cover, skin stapler, instrument bag, under-buttocks drape with pouch, retractor hook, suction cannula yankauer, time out drape, scalpel blade, instrument
drape, syringe 50ml catheter tip, catheter sil, camera drape, veress needle stopcock, needle counter magnetic, flexible light handle covers, 5 x gauze round sponge, stick sponge
orange, diathermy pencil, scalpel holder red, skin marker modern regular tip, syringe, post op dressing, hyp. needle, safety clip, 2 x syringe 10ml, scaple blade no. 10, plastic bag
siplock, 5 x gauze lap, 5 x gauze swab, cover chair blue.
TAILOR-MADE
FOR CUSTOMERS
Mölnlycke Health Care is the market leader in custom procedure
trays with ProcedurePak trays – an innovative solution that highlights
our passion for meeting our customers’ needs.
33 34
33
GETTING CLOSER TO CLINICIANS

THE CLINICIANS’ VIEWS
ProcedurePak trays contribute
to a pleasant work environment,
less stress and better use of
time – in one word, efficiency.”
Dr Maurice Mommaerts
Maxillofacial Surgeon
AZ Sint-Jan Burgge-Oostende AV
Bruges, Belgium
We opted to split our trays into
specific versions for primary
operations and revision
procedures. Revision surgery
always requires more items
that we had to add ourselves.
Next to saving time, having
everything delivered in a single
sterile package also reduces
stress, eliminates mistakes
and improves patient safety.”
Tanja Heikillä
OR Nurse
Coxa Hospital
Tampere, Finland
We certainly save at least ten
minutes on the preparations for
every operation. That can also be
seen in the far shorter set-up and
switchover times. All in all, the
various process improvements
have enabled us to increase the
number of surgical procedures
while maintaining the same
staffing levels.”
Susanne Renfer
OR Specialist,
Kantonsspital Baden
Baden, Switzerland
In emergency situations, we
can get the material into the
OR within one minute. That
would be impossible without
ProcedurePak trays.”
Martijn Bekhuis
Logistics Assistant
Medisch Spectrum
Twente, Netherlands
Thanks to the ProcedurePak
trays, we are now able to
do in the same working day
almost double of what we
did 20 years ago.”
Dr. Alain Beugnies
Head of Orthopaedic
Surgery Clinique Saint-Luc
Bouge, Belgium
Clinicians from across Europe share their views on
the advantages of working with ProcedurePaks
“
“
“
“
“
GETTING CLOSER TO PATIENTS
KEEPING IT
PERSONAL
At Mölnlycke Health Care, our work can transform
patients’ lives. By striving to understand their experiences,
we reinforce our purpose – to improve lives.
“The closer we are to our patients and clini-
cians,” says Cheng Wei Wee, Vice-President,
Marketing, Wound Care USA, “the more per-
sonalourday-to-dayworkbecomes.Listening
to people’s stories of overcoming pain and
suffering gives us insight – and centres us as
a company.”
“As a leading healthcare devices company,
we must never forget that we are here to
make a difference,” he goes on. “That’s why
we invited the actor, winner of ‘Dancing
with the Stars’ and motivational speaker
J.R. Martinez to speak at the American Burn
Associations 47th Annual Meeting (21 – 24
April 2015, Chicago) and at the Symposium
on Advanced Wound Care (29 April– 3 May
2015) in San Antonio.”
For Cheng – and for many others – J.R.
Martinez is an inspiration: “He speaks incred-
ibly movingly about overcoming pain and
trauma. As employees at Mölnlycke Health
Care, we come to work in the morning to help
people like him. He is an inspiring example
of how our leadership purpose can positively
impact patient care.”
Actor, winner of ‘Dancing with the
Stars’ and motivational speaker
J.R. Martinez suffered 34 percent
burns after a roadside bomb
exploded under his vehicle during
the Iraq war.
“I don’t remember anything from
the field hospital where I was first
treated. A nurse told me later that
I was telling them to let me go as I
was fine – even though I had third-
degree burns all over my body.
That was when they made the
decision to put me in a medically-
induced coma to treat my most
serious injuries.
“I was subsequently treated at the
Landstuhl Regional Medical Center
in Germany and at the specialist
burns unit at the San Antonio
Military Medical Center in Texas.
Over a period of nearly three years,
I received numerous skin grafts and
underwent a lot of plastic surgery.
Although the nurses and doctors
did what they could to make me
comfortable, my body was extremely
sensitive and I experienced a lot of
pain and trauma.
“Any burn injury is hard to
overcome, mentally as well as
physically. But by the end, I was
no longer afraid. You draw on your
reserves of grit and determination.
And you have to make the decision to
survive – and not allow a moment of
your life to control you forever.”
“He is an inspiring example
of how our leadership
purpose can positively
impact patient care.”
Cheng Wei Wee
J.R. Martinez is an American
actor, motivational speaker
and former U.S. Army soldier.
35 36

For the last few years, Mölnlycke Health
Care has seen growing customer demand
for its products in pharmacies and other
retail outlets. But until recently, the com-
pany’s solutions were only available in
clinical settings.
Throughout the wound care journey
The company started selling its advanced
wound dressings through pharmacies in
the Nordic countries in 2011. “We wanted
to be able to follow patients through the
entire wound care journey,” explains Marie-
Maximiliame Bergelin, Global Marketing
Manager, OTC at Mölnlycke Health Care.
“Patients find it very reassuring to be
able to continue with the same advanced
dressings that their wound care nurses
have recommended.”
Recently discharged patients are not
the only people buying advanced wound
care products off the pharmacy shelves.
Pharmacist Reija Koskela from Pharmacy
Medena in Helsinki identifies two types of
customer: “Some people come in, knowing
exactly what dressing they need as they
have used it in hospital. Others are looking
for a way to manage a particular type of
wound at home. They often need product
recommendations from us – and we rely
heavily on training from healthcare devices
companies to help us understand the
different types of wound, and the most
appropriate treatment for them.”
“Pharmacists often recommend dress-
ings with Safetac to customers looking for
easy-to-use, cost-effective wound care
solutions,” says Marie-Maxiliame. “Our
dressings minimise pain at dressing change
and promote faster healing – and they are
very effective. Because they need to be
changed less often, you don’t need to use
so many of them.”
Understanding patient needs
Outside woundcare, the company has
made its best-selling emollient Epaderm
available through pharmacies and other
retail outlets in the UK. “Pharmacists
feel comfortable recommending Epaderm
because it has the fewest ingredients of any
comparable product,” says Dan Dummer,
UK Commercial Manager for OTC and
Primary Care. “Customers like it too. And
when people decide something works for
them, they want to be able to get hold
of it easily.”
With Epaderm on sale in more than 3,000
UK stores, the company’s understanding
of patients is growing in leaps and bounds.
“We know far more thanks to the increased
availability of our products,” says Dan.
“Now we are changing the way we do
things to meet customer needs.”
A quantum leap forward
But it is in the United States that Mölnlycke
Health Care is taking a quantum leap forward
in its mission to get closer to consumers. In
2014, the company set up a joint project with
retail pharmacy giant CVS Health to make its
advanced wound care products with Safetac
available through stores.
“I strongly believe that everyone should be
abletobenefitfromtheresearchthathasgone
intodevelopingourproducts,”saysMölnlycke
HealthCareCEORichardTwomey.“Wehave
identified a real demand for effective wound
care solutions that people can use at home,
like Mepilex Border Lite. With around 95%
of the US population living within five miles
of a CVS Health pharmacy, this move will
make our products more accessible to more
of the people who need them.”
From the middle of 2015, a co-branded range
comprising Mepilex Border Lite®, Mepiform®
and Mepitel® Film will be on sale in the First
Aid section exclusively in 7,800 CVS Health
stores. “This innovation will help us reach
even more customers,” says Richard.
Above
Examples of first aid products
being sold in CVS stores.
Left
Mepilex product being
demonstrated to customers.
“I strongly believe that everyone should be
able to benefit from the research that has
gone into developing our products”
Richard Twomey
For this magazine local
photographers were used
for all the photo shoots to
minimise our carbon footprint.
OVER THE COUNTER
GETTING
CLOSER TO
PATIENTS
2015 has seen Mölnlycke Health Care take
a giant leap forward in its mission to make
its world-leading products and solutions
available directly to patients.
3837

ROADS LESS
TRAVELLED
By reducing the distance products travel, our logistics
team are not only helping to cut emissions and shrink
our carbon footprint, they are also bringing the company
closer to its customers around the world.
Global Logistics Director
Clas Bolander.
CO2 REDUCTION
39 40

Below and right
Loading finished products at our new
factory in Brunswick, USA. By fitting
more boxes in each truck, we can make
fewer journeys, thus reducing CO2.
Opposite page
A truck full of products on its
way to customers.
As a global company with customers on
every continent, it is perhaps not surprising
that the biggest share of Mölnlycke Health
Care’s carbon footprint comes from trans-
portation. Every kilometre our products
travel on the way to customers adds to our
total emissions.
The company has made significant reduc-
tions in CO2 from transport in recent years
as a result of measures such as switching
modes of transport, for example by limit-
ing the use of air freight. Nothing is sent
by air unless it is absolutely essential to get
products to the customer quickly.
In January 2015 we set a new target, to cut
CO2 from transport by a further 5 percent
by 2017. Global Logistics Director Clas
Bolander knows that this saving will be
difficult to achieve. But he is confident it can
be done and he is committed to working with
everyone inside the business – and with our
suppliers – to achieve it.
Driving down truck emissions
“First, we need to look at the small stuff.
The more we fill each truck or container, the
fewer journeys we need to make and the less
CO2 we will emit. So we are looking at how
we package and box our products to fit more
on each pallet.”
The company’s Malaysian factories have
already worked with local packaging suppli-
ers to redesign the boxes for surgical gloves.
This means they can fit 10 percent more
in the same space on every pallet that is
shipped out.
Taking the direct route
“On a global level, we need to be smarter
and organise things better,” says Clas, “like
streamlining our distribution networks so
our products take the most direct route
possible to reach our customers.”
The logistics team want to minimise long
delivery loops, where products visit multi-
ple distribution centres in several countries,
before reaching the customer. “We want
to end up using fewer distribution centres
located closer to where customers live. That
is good for everyone – for the environment,
our customers and our business.”
Making products close to market
Another way the company is reducing
emissions is by manufacturing more
products close to their markets. For exam-
ple, wound care products for the North
American market used to travel all the way
from Finland. But now, our new factory in
Brunswick, Maine, will supply wound care
products to North America.
Not only that, the factory is developing rela-
tionships with US suppliers, so that materials
can be sourced locally, too.
“In the longer term, we would like to coor-
dinate some journeys – so the same trucks
that go out with our finished product return
with materials for our factories,” says Clas.
“We are also looking at using double-decker
trucks, which are not yet widely used but
have great potential to maximise fill rates
and reduce journeys.”
Measuring and planning
Clas is under no illusions about the work that
needs to be done: “Achieving everything we
want will take a lot of work and cooperation
with colleagues and suppliers. We will need
to plan carefully to make sure this does not
affect on-time delivery.
“We will also need to get better at measuring
and gathering all transport data centrally – so
we can monitor our progress and be certain
about how much CO2 we are saving.”
But he is sure that the end result will be
worth the effort. “If we do these things and
get it right, we will not only benefit the envi-
ronment, we will also become more efficient
and deliver a better service by being closer to
our customers.”
600,000
DELIVERIES
We made 600,000 deliveries
to our partners last year
CO2 REDUCTION
41 42

Mölnlycke Health Care sells only products that meet
high levels of quality, safety and environmental
responsibility. This is not easy with a large and
diverse range of suppliers. But we have strict
procedures for delivering that promise.
“We work with all sorts of suppliers – from
logistics companies to the manufacturers
of the components in ProcedurePaks,” says
Paul Bakker, one of the Strategic Sourcing
Managers in the Global Procurement Team.
“Our suppliers see us as a serious company
that is very strict with the qualification
process. We only work with businesses that
understand the importance of continuously
providing products, components and services
that meet our strict standards.”
Signing up to the Standard
Paul’s team is responsible for supplier qual-
ification and there is a rigorous assessment
and evaluation process. “Once we accept
a supplier,” he explains, “they must sign a
supplier agreement document containing
lead times and forecast information, a quality
agreement, a technical document detailing
what we want them to produce – and our
Supplier Standard.”
The Standard (which has its origins in the
Corporate Code of Conduct) states the mini-
mum requirements suppliers must meet and
coversawiderangeoftopicssuchashealthand
safety, working hours and the environment.
“The Code exists to make sure that whatever
we deliver has been created ethically,” says
Paul. “We have to be confident that the entire
supply chain lives up to our standards – and it
is important to our customers, too.”
Rigorous ongoing checks
Quality assessment does not end after the
company has set up a contract with a supplier.
“Post-appointment, we are in regular contact
with them to check their performance against
KPIs [Key Performance Indicators],” explains
Paul. “So if things start to go wrong, we can
get things quickly back on track.”
The company uses a Supplier Performance
Management system to monitor, improve
and control supplier performance. There
are also supplier audits to assess the health
of suppliers’ quality systems.
WORKING
TOGETHER
TO DELIVER
THE BEST
Employees from a local supplier
take part in training at our Mikkeli
factory in Finland.
43 44
43
OUR SUPPLIERS

“At Mölnlycke Health Care,” says Jessica
DiPietro, Legal Project Manager, “social
responsibility is in our DNA. Everyone
works hard to deliver it – both in their
behaviour and in ensuring it is adopted
throughout the supply chain.”
Mölnlycke Health Care’s commitment to
responsibility is reflected in the company’s
Code of Conduct. “Put simply, if we follow
the Code, we will live our values, be socially
responsible and reap the rewards of a suc-
cessful business.”
A Code for all
The Code governs everyone’s behaviour –
from the CEO to sales executives around the
world. To protect the company’s reputation
for high-quality products and high stand-
ards, everyone who represents Mölnlycke
Health Care must be familiar with the Code
and comply with it.
As Jessica explains: “The Code is also impor-
tant because it provides each of us with
guidance on a wide range of topics, such as
customer relationships, payments, corporate
opportunities and political activity. Just as
importantly, it tells customers that we under-
stand and follow international and local laws
and guidelines – and that we are the type of
company they want to do business with.”
Compliance through training
“The message we send to our customers is
important, so thorough employee training is
crucial,” says Jessica. “As a global company,
we have to do this remotely to supplement
local initiatives. That is where the Learning
and Management System [LMS] comes in.
“The LMS is a system that houses all of our
training programmes, which includes the
Code of Conduct. Everyone can access the
LMS – whenever they need it, wherever they
are in the world.”
Jessica, who ensured the Code of Conduct
was implemented worldwide, has had a very
positive reaction to it: “We all now have a
single place to look for information, and we
can be confident it is up to date. If we cannot
find what we need, the Code contains a list
of people we can contact with a question. We
also have instructions for discreetly reporting
violations if needed.”
Looking ahead
“We treat the Code as a living document.
Laws and regulations change, and our
business is changing too. So we update it
frequently.” With such strong corporate
and individual commitments, Mölnlycke
Health Care is ideally placed to become the
most trusted healthcare brand in the world.
The Code in action
Jana Dohnalova, a Quality Engineer in the
Czech Republic, showed that following the
Code of Conduct means taking action when
you spot a possible breach. When she noticed
close to 100 litres of glue in “empty” barrels,
she simply angled them on pallet trucks to
remove the remnants of glue and ensure the
barrels could be recycled by the supplier.
Her simple and environmentally responsi-
ble solution meant Mölnlycke Health Care
was able to use glue that was previously
considered waste material. Jana’s initiative
shows that it is possible to strike a balance
between company and environmental needs.
Sometimes it is simply about the angle.
There is no denying that Mölnlycke Health
Care expects a great deal from its suppliers.
But in return it treats them openly, honestly
and fairly. Employees work hard to build
long-term relationships with suppliers so
that both parties can grow. The company’s
five-year relationship with DSV (a global
supplier of transport and logistics solutions)
is a clear example of this.
A collaborative approach
Clas Bolander, Global Logistics Director:
explains: “When we selected DSV, it was
not just because they had all the technical
skills we needed. They also showed that they
had a culture that matched ours, enough
capacity to improve and a flexible approach
to the future.
“I think of the tender process as an
engagement and the work that follows
as a marriage – when the hard work really
starts. It is clear to me from the work we
have been doing together that DSV shares
our values.”
Clas is also open about the need for flex-
ibility: “DSV have shown that they are
able to work with a level of uncertainty.
We need this because we are constantly
changing as a business. For example, we
have collaborated on a major restructuring
of warehousing and logistics, moving away
from a multiple distribution centre model
to a single distribution centre.”
As with all other areas of the business, the
logistics team follows strict processes with
DSV. “We have KPIs and Service Level
Agreements, and if there are any deviations,
we have a process for how to react quickly.
We also have regular business reviews,”
explains Clas. “And, of course, we pay fairly
and promptly. We keep our promises and
we are transparent, so DSV always knows
where it stands.”
Building relationships
Employees at DSV agree. Gert Vriend is
Director of Global Account Management
at the company. He characterises the
relationship with Mölnlycke Health Care
as being “very collaborative with a lot of
mutual respect”.
“Wehaveaveryopenandhonestrelationship
across the whole organisation,” he explains,
“and the attitudes of the two companies are
the same.”
Buttherelationshiphasgrownovertime.Gert
says: “They are open about the ways we need
toimproveandwelikethat.”Thisisevidentin
thewaythatDSVhascommittedtoimproving
their warehousing procedures for medical
supplies. Now, everyone in the warehouse
whohandlesMölnlyckeHealthCareproducts
receives training from the company.
It is clear that open dialogue and a joint com-
mitment to deliver are key to the success
of the company-supplier relationship. As
Clas Bolander says: “As a business, we are
constantly changing. We need partners who
will invest in us and who are willing to learn
and grow like us. Collaboration is key in an
uncertain world.”
“When we selected DSV, it was not just
because they had all the technical skills we
needed. They also showed that they had a
culture that matched ours.”
Clas Bolander
DSV employees work
closely with our staff to
coordinate transportation.
WORKING
RESPONSIBLY,
LIVING BY OUR CODE
Everyone at Mölnlycke Health Care is proud to be working towards
the vision of becoming the most trusted healthcare brand in the
world. Legal Project Manager Jessica DiPietro explains how the
Corporate Code of Conduct plays an important part.
Glue barrels safely stowed
for collection and recycling
at Karvina.
45 46
MÖLNLYCKE HEALTH CARE MAGAZINE CODE OF CONDUCT

STRENGTH IN
DIVERSITY
By ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to
realise their potential, we have created a diverse and
dynamic workforce that reflects the global community
of clinicians and patients we serve.
As a global business, Mölnlycke Health
Care works with clinicians and patients
allovertheworld,andoursuccessisbased
on a deep understanding of their needs.
To achieve this, and build the meaningful
partnershipsthatunderpinourlong-term
success, our own workforce must be as
diverse and varied as the communities
we serve.
Fresh perspectives
This mission is reflected in the company’s
recruitment strategy. “We aim to recruit the
best people”, says Executive Vice President
HRandCorporateCommunicationsMaarten
van Beek, “people who excel in their pro-
fession, and have a passion for serving our
customers and patients. This has resulted in
a very diverse workforce.”
That diversity brings benefits that go even
deeper, as Maarten explains: “A homoge-
neous workforce is one-dimensional and
limited. People from different backgrounds
bring different styles and perspectives and a
constant flow of new ideas. That enriches our
thinkingandstrengthensourdecision-making
at every level.”
Realising potential
A key part of creating a diverse workforce is
opening up opportunities for learning and
development,sothateveryonehasthechance
to realise their potential. We have identified
eight High Performance Behaviours which
we expect of our employees – and these
form the basis for our development needs.
Thecompanyoffersasinglepointofaccessfor
a whole range of learning resources and tools.
Thisensuresthateveryoneacrossthecompany
speaks the same language of learning.
Those resources include a suite of pro-
grammes aimed at nurturing talent across
the board. “We have a single, unified perfor-
mance review cycle that operates globally, so
we can identify individuals with potential,
wherever they may be,” says Global Talent
and Development Manager Sonal Riley.
“Then we have a range of talent development
initiatives, aimed at emerging talents as well
as more senior people.”
Creating a learning culture
Such initiatives reflect the need to offer a
rich mix of learning resources. “Learning
does not have to be about going on a formal
course,” says Sonal. “In fact, research shows
that people learn more outside the classroom,
including by exploring their own interests in
a less formal way.”
That approach also highlights the benefits of
the company’s diverse employee profile. As
MaartenvanBeekexplains:“Ofcourseformal
learning is important. But our people learn
so much more from their colleagues around
them. The diversity of our workforce creates
an environment where people not only think
outside the box – but are happy to listen to
and accept other people’s new ideas. In fact,
I’d go as far as to say that the diversity of our
company is one of the reasons for our success
in innovation.”
Left
Executive Vice President HR
and Corporate Communications
Maarten van Beek
Rignt
Sonal Riley, left, promotes
diversity by developing emerging
talent from around the world.
OUR WORKFORCE
4847

“I began my career in public accounting,
before moving into technology start-ups.
I loved working as part of a team, and
taking on a leadership role. Here, I can
build on that. My role at Mölnlycke Health
Care gives me a truly global leadership
opportunity and it’s wonderful to be able
to share ideas and perspectives with
people from such varied backgrounds.
This is an incredibly dynamic environment.
People at Mölnlycke Health Care are
genuinely passionate about what they
do, and the difference they make to
people’s lives.
“My priority for these first few months at
Mölnlycke Health Care has been to listen
and learn as much as possible. Fortunately
everyone has been incredibly supportive,
and generous with their knowledge. There
has been a lot of informal mentoring of
me – that is pretty indicative of the culture
here ¬– and I’m looking forward to getting
involved as a mentor in more formal,
structured programmes too. There are
so many opportunities to develop.
“This has been a period of pretty
fundamental change in the organisation,
and we have been really focused on
building our new team – and figuring out
how we can all work together effectively.
I have had a lot of support from the board,
the audit committee and the rest of the
executive team.
“Now I want to try to do the same for the
people that work directly to me. This is a
place where people care about each other,
as well as about the business. I think that
is a real strength.”
Ivin Tang recently marked her
first year in post as Regional
Marketing Director for Wound
Care Asia-Pacific.
“This is an exciting time to be working
in Marketing at Mölnlycke Health Care.
Marketing has gone from being viewed
as a support function to being an integral,
leading part of the business. I joined
because I could see exactly how my
experience and expertise could help to
support that journey, and also how the
company could help me develop, both
professionally and personally.
“I was also keen to be part of a diverse
team. The APAC management team is
split 60:40 between women and men,
and represents different nationalities
too. Everyone brings their own unique
perspective, and their own style of
leadership. It makes for a very
dynamic environment.
“There is definitely a feeling that people
at every level are encouraged to be
entrepreneurial and to think outside the
box - as our Employer Value Proposition
sets out. That old attitude of ‘We do
it that way because that’s the way
we’ve always done it’ does not apply.
By working closely with the people
on the ground and applying that local
intelligence, we can focus on those
areas where there is most potential
and where we can add most value,
and develop an approach that is
tailored to the needs of each market.
“The atmosphere is one of mutual
respect, and readiness to listen. The
door is always open. I feel valued here,
and there are so many opportunities
for me to grow, for example by being
involved in the commercial and
operational aspects of the business as
well as the more strategic side. So often,
organisations talk about attracting and
keeping the best people – but it is how
people are treated on a day-to-day basis
that really matters.”
Cheng Wei Wee’s journey at
Mölnlycke Health Care has
taken him from Singapore to
Sweden and the USA, where he
is Vice President of Marketing,
Wound Care.
“My father used to tell me: ‘embrace
opportunities, believe in yourself, live
your dreams and make a difference’. It
was good advice which I have taken and
made a reality, thanks to the opportunities,
mentoring and support I have received
during my career with the company.
“My managers have been Swedish, Asian,
British, Finnish and American, but they
have all shared the same commitment to
developing employees. It is in the culture
of the company to be forward-looking. We
always think about the next generation of
leaders and how to develop the potential
in people from all parts of the world.
“I joined the Asia-Pacific office based in
Singapore as Regional Product Manager,
Wound Care in 2003. My manager there
put me forward for the Global Leadership
Development Program (GLDP). That was
a big opportunity and really started me
on the career path I am on today.
“In 2009, I had the opportunity to become
Country Manager for the ASEAN business.
Then I moved to Gothenburg where I
became Global Product Director leading the
Global Category Team in 2012. Now I have
the biggest challenge of my career, as Vice-
President, Marketing for Wound Care in the
USA, driving growth in our biggest wound
care market.
“Since my move from Singapore, the
change has been phenomenal – the
cultural difference, the distance from home
and the challenges of my different roles.
The exposure I have gained to different
markets, people and cultures shapes
my ideas. I have learned to look at things
from different angles and collaborate
successfully with others.
“I am extremely fortunate to have had very
strong support from my co-workers and
management during my journey – and to
be leading a young, diverse and talented
team who challenge me with their fresh
thinking and enthusiasm.
“Today, I am a member of the Leadership
Forum, which gives me the opportunity
to mentor talented people on the GLDP.
It is great to be able to pass some of the
encouragement and support I have received
on to the budding talents of tomorrow.”
“One of my proudest achievements is being a
member of the Leadership Forum, which gives me
the opportunity to mentor people on the GLDP –
just as I was once mentored myself.”
Cheng Wei Wee
Michelle Roy joined Mölnlycke
Health Care as Chief Financial
Officer in June 2014.
“My priority for these first few months
at Mölnlycke Health Care has been to listen
and learn as much as possible. Fortunately,
everyone has been incredibly supportive,
and generous with their knowledge.”
Michelle Roy
are proud to work
for the company86%
OUR WORKFORCE
49 50

If you want to design the most effective
tool for a particular job, who better to talk
tothanthepersonwhoisgoingtobeusing
it?Forustodevelopproductsthatmeetand
even surpass the needs of our customers –
and their patients – we first need to listen,
andthenapplywhatwelearntoeverystage
of the development process.
“Product development is a two-way street.
Throughout the development journey, from
idea generation to products used on patients,
it is essential to engage with specialists
and clinicians to inform the process,” says
Caroline Morvan, Global Product Manager
for Safetac.
“For example, back in the 1980s, clinicians
told us that pain and trauma at dressing
change was a big issue. So we developed
Safetac, the first-ever silicone adhesive in
a dressing. It minimises pain and stress
during dressing changes. Mepitel was our
first product with Safetac technology – and
it made a huge difference for patients. From
these beginnings, the Safetac family has
evolvedtocovermanyindicationsandpatient
requirements to include 24 different ranges.”
Responding to changing needs
Teams at Mölnlycke Health Care are
constantly working on new and innovative
products to respond to customer needs.
Wound care nurses recently expressed a need
for a product to help them manage wounds
with high-viscosity exudate.
“Chronic wounds, such as venous leg ulcers’
can produce thick and sticky exudate,”
Caroline explains. “Nurses told us that there
was no atraumatic dressing on the market
that adequately supports the management
of this problem. Nurses report that patients
struggle with these kinds of wounds and can
often become distressed. Leakage and skin
maceration are very common.”
The response was Mepilex XT – a soft,
conformable foam dressing with Safetac
that can handle both low and high viscosity
exudate. “It is a prime example of how
customer and patient insight informs product
development,” says Caroline.
The listening does not stop once a new
product has been developed: it is ongoing.
“We take the opportunity post-launch to
continue discussion with clinicians. We
actively invite feedback on our products and
their different uses,” says Caroline.
“Drawing on these kinds of insights, our
wound care products continue to evolve.
For example, products like Mepilex Border
Sacrum and Mepilex Heel were carefully
developed for a specific part of the body, as
a result of external input.”
Clinical evidence about our products can
also come from outside the company.
This independent input is extremely
valuable and can actually change the way
that products are used, as Jill McLean,
Strategic Marketing Manager, explains:
“Academics and clinicians frequently
conduct independent research into our
products, and we follow their findings.
Pressure ulcer prevention is a case in point.”
Positive results
Two independent randomised controlled
trials investigated the efficacy of
Mepilex Border Sacrum as a prophylactic
dressing to prevent pressure ulcers –
with positive results.
“Thanks to the results of the trials, we
know that Mepilex Border Sacrum can
reduce the risk of pressure ulcers forming,
when used alongside standard preventive
measures,” says Jill. “This evidence has
been cited in recently updated international
clinical practice guidelines supporting the
recommendation of the use of prophylactic
dressings as part of pressure ulcer
prevention regimes.”
At Mölnlycke Health Care, patients and customers are at the heart
of everything we do. So when we develop a new product, we listen –
to clinicians, to patients and to academics. Their needs form the
backbone of the development process, from initial ideas all the way
through to implementation and beyond.
THE CUSTOMER
VOICE Listening to experts
As part of its formal collaboration
with experts, the company now runs
a Global Advisory Board for Pressure
Ulcer Prevention. Dr Nick Santamaria,
Professor of Nursing Research
– Translational Research at the
University of Melbourne, is one of
the independent opinion leaders on
the Board, which meets twice a year
to share insights and expertise.
“Recently our focus has been on
bringing together the evidence for
the use of dressings as prevention for
pressure ulcers with a particular focus
on the multilayer soft silica dressings
produced by Mölnlycke Health Care,”
he says. “We have recently released
a consensus statement with recom-
mendations to help practitioners use
wound dressings most effectively.”
Professor Santamaria passionately
believes in the use of dressings to
help prevent pressure ulcers. “For
some patients, pressure ulcers are a
nuisance but for the critically ill, they
can be a matter of life and death,”
he says. He also sees clear health
economic benefits “Using a dressing is
like having a vaccination,” he says. “A
vaccine is there to prevent the develop-
ment of a more serious condition. By
spending a little bit of money today, we
prevent a much more serious disease
in the future.”
For Professor Santamaria, there is
an obvious synergy between his own
goals and those of Mölnlycke Health
Care. “As a professor, I see my role
as to advance knowledge and develop
clinical excellence. I share the same
ultimate aim as the board, which is
to increase patient safety. Mölnlycke
Health Care is one of the few compa-
nies with a tangible commitment to
clinical research – it puts its money
where its mouth is.”
Top
Insight from customers,
clinicians and academics is key
to great product development for
Jill McClean.
Above and right
We developed Mepilex XT with
Safetac after listening to nurses
who treat high exuding wounds.
CUSTOMER INSIGHT
51 52

As life improves in developing countries such as China and Brazil, the
healthcare challenges they face are changing too. Mölnlycke Health Care
is leading the way in sharing best practice with local clinicians to help
improve standards of care.
ONE WORLD OF
HEALTHCARE
Wound care in China has changed
immensely over recent years, according to
Mikkel Dalgaard Heuer, General Manager
of Mölnlycke Health Care in China.
“Hospital infrastructure has expanded
and improved, there is increased govern-
ment funding and care is more affordable
for patients.”
“The type of wounds has changed too,”
continues Mikkel. “Ten years ago, burns
were a significant challenge. As health and
safety at work has become more impor-
tant, clinicians no longer see so many
burns. Conversely, diseases associated
with wealthy countries – like diabetes – are
becoming more and more common. But the
knowledge and skills of clinicians have not
always kept pace with this.
“We are also seeing a new focus on preven-
tion,” he continues. “In the past, prevent-
ing healthcare-acquired conditions, like
pressure ulcers, would have been seen
as a luxury. Now that we can show how
cost-effective prevention can be, it is at the
forefront of healthcare in China.”
Sharing the latest techniques
Withitsexpertiseandevidencebaseinwounds
and wound care, Mölnlycke Health Care
is well placed to share its knowledge with
clinicians facing new types of challenge.
“Our focus is on advancing knowledge
within China as a whole,” explains
Mikkel. “We run seminar series and
training courses with professional associ-
ations and government bodies, as well as
in hospitals, to inform clinicians about the
latest techniques for managing wounds.”
The company also collaborates with
professional associations to update
protocols and develop a local Chinese
evidence base. “We worked with the
Chinese Nursing Association to help
them establish pressure ulcer prevention
guidelines,” says Mikkel. “And we helped
the Beijing Nursing Association to share
Chinese best practice around pressure
ulcer prevention – to support the develop-
ment of an evidence base that is specific
to China. It all helps improve standards
of care for patients.”
Linking with local clinicians
Mölnlycke Health Care partners with
professional associations in other devel-
oping countries too. In Brazil, where the
company has just set up a new sales office,
we are developing relationships with soci-
eties and associations across the country.
Rogerio Cavaleiro, Business Director for
Wound Care, Brazil explains: “We are keen
to work with organisations like the Stoma
Association, the Vascular Society and the
National Woundcare Society to establish
training programmes in particular ther-
apy areas. By connecting with clinicians
through their professional networks, we
can reach beyond the rich southeast to all
areas of the country. Patients throughout
Brazil should be able to benefit from the
latest clinical practice.”
The company also runs one-off educational
activities on therapy areas such as pressure
ulcer prevention, as Rogerio explains:
“Last year, we ran a session for 50 clini-
cians with a speaker from the Mölnlycke
Health Care Advisory Board on Pressure
Ulcer Prevention. It was also an opportunity
for our customers to share best practice by
presenting their own cases.”
Proving value with evidence
Another region where the company’s educa-
tional programmes are well established is
the Middle East. Catherine Reyes Gloria
is the Business Development Manager for
Wound Care for the Middle East and Africa.
“We have been supporting a one-day
programme – the Art and Science of
Wound Care – in the Middle East since
2009,” she says. “Local specialists deliver
EMERGING MARKETS
LuoMan from Wuhan No.3
Hospital is among hundreds
of wound care nurses in
China who have attended
training courses in pressure
ulcer prevention run by
Mölnlycke Health Care.
53 54

Molnlycke Health Care mag 2015

Molnlycke Health Care mag 2015

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