We are all affected by the Coronavirus pandemic and the resulting health crisis. It’s a worldwide battle that places a special responsibility on pharmaceutical corporations and producers. In the post-Covid world, product availability, safety, and trustworthiness are key requirements for doctors, patients, and medical equipment manufacturers. Fortunately, technology is proving to be of great help in meeting these requirements.
Today, technology has a huge role in data analysis and testing, innovation, quality, production, logistics, and administration. While we appreciate these life-saving medical software applications, it’s also worth considering how developing technologies like Blockchain may provide even more value. Blockchain was first launched more than a decade ago, and it is now used for more than just bitcoin platforms. It has grown into something more substantial, with the ability to modify the rules and bring new types of collaboration.
What is Blockchain & What are the Advantages?
A blockchain is a sort of database that stores data in blocks that are subsequently linked together in a chain. New data is chained onto the preceding block as it fills one block – and as a result, the data is organized chronologically. Furthermore, data placed into blocks is immutable, making the solution irreversible.
The following are some of the major benefits of blockchain technology:
Automation: Blockchain uses “smart contracts” to automate activities, reducing human interaction and reliance on third parties to ensure that all participants adhere to the contract’s requirements.
Security: Data entered into the section cannot be modified. All financial transactions are encrypted and connected to the block before them. As a result, tracing back actions and detecting fraud attempts becomes easy.
Traceability: With the help of healthcare implementation services, you can utilize Blockchain to trace the origins of goods more easily.
Efficiency and Speed: The platform simplifies and speeds up financial transactions. Its dispersed structure eliminates the need for third-party payment processors.
Transparency: The database operation ledge is available to the public, ensuring that blockchain-based systems are transparent. There is no need to seek the help of third parties to evaluate or verify the data.
What Is the Role of Blockchain in the Pharmaceutical Industry?
The pharmaceutical business is faced with a number of issues that must be addressed in the near future since the worldwide pandemic has demonstrated how disruptive these issues are to the smooth operation of the organizations involved in the process. Blockchain in pharma has a broad range of applications as follows:
Clinical Trials
Blockchain has the potential to improve clinical trial outcomes. The platform’s nature is immutable, guaranteeing that clinical trials and procedures are preserved and done with the most accuracy. Blockchain is also very safe, and can’t be hacked into. As a result, it may offer trial participants more confidence, and they will be more excited in taking part in future medication research.
The system remains safe since it is dispersed among several parties and decoding the block’s hash is nearly difficult. Even if a section of the architecture is hacked, the data will not be lost because it is stored by other parties. With the help of a good healthcare software development company, you can implement Blockchain to keep your clinical trial data private and accurate. Furthermore, stakeholders might develop public registries to have access to clinical trial outcomes.
Research & Development
Blockchain can also assist in overcoming roadblocks in the R&D process. It has the potential to improve drug research and development by facilitating collaboration between business and academic institutions, as well as charitable organizations. Smart contracts, for example, will shorten the time it takes to sell products since firms will not need to invest additional resources in the process, like banks, lawyers, etc.
By combining the technology with AI, ML, and NLP, we can have better data mining and analysis of current literature or patent applications. Furthermore, the technology’s security provides benefits for intellectual property protection, guaranteeing that fresh research data and discoveries are not compromised.
Patient Data Management
In the future, it is expected that Blockchain technology-based solutions would be able to simplify the administration and sharing of patient data among various providers, ranging from insurance companies to research groups.
Patients will be able to select who has access to their personal information and only share information from their accounts that is relevant to them. A medical software development company will help you create a platform that will act as a database for tracking and storing patient data, allowing you to access information using a single identity.
Inventory Management
Inventory management is another use case for Blockchain in pharma. Pharmaceutical firms can better manage their stocks with adequate supply chain integration. When there is a supply or demand scenario, the inventory may also be automated to produce triggers.
If there is a surge in demand, for example, the system may simply issue a demand alert, asking for more medicine production. It will also provide wholesalers with a clear picture of how their inventory is functioning under various conditions. Pharmaceutical companies may also use the technology to track and trace each stage of the process.
Supply Chain Enhancement
One of the primary problems for businesses is the improvement of the supply chain in the field. In this scenario, the solution is advantageous since it can ensure rapid and secure operations all over the world. Companies can also utilize this resource to develop auditable trials and pharmaceutical sources across the supply chain. It implies that everyone from producers to customers may check the drug’s source, development process, quality, and delivery circumstances in a secure setting.
Furthermore, because the Blockchain database is distributed, the solution encourages transparency and security. The parties participating in the supply chain should all adhere to the system’s set procedure in order to evaluate, exchange, and update data and ensure that the information is accurate and timely.
The authenticity of Returned Drugs
Also, pharmaceutical corporations must deal with returned pharmaceuticals on a regular basis. This occurs as a result of wholesalers’ overstocking. As a result, they must return the unneeded inventory to the makers. Approximately 2% to 3% of the medications are returned at any given moment. The most serious problem, however, is that the returns are made up entirely of counterfeit pharmaceuticals.
A decentralized blockchain is a solution for these issues. Pharmaceutical companies may simply register the product serial number on blockchain this way. This implies that the drug’s authenticity may be checked from any location. A new era has begun with blockchain pharmacy. It allows buyers and distributors to verify authenticity without having to rely on a centralized authority.
Things to Keep in Mind While Implementing Blockchain in Pharmaceuticals
Businesses in the pharmaceutical and other industries should understand why they need to adopt the solution and how blockchain development will measure their success. Therefore, it is important that you keep these points in mind.
Identify the areas of improvement
Determine which aspects of the organization require improvement. This step entails examining your requirements and structuring them for technological implementation. Determine your own use case, and it will assist you in defining the objectives you want to achieve, as well as guide you through the following steps.
Start small
Determine a project that will yield a return on investment in the quickest period possible. A proof of concept is an eight- to twelve-week engagement that demonstrates the capacity of blockchain to address a major tactical or strategic issue. This helps you to grow comfortable and conversant with the technology while also achieving success for your company without devoting too much time or money.
Evaluate your resources
The procedures of development and execution are not simple. They need expert knowledge and expertise. If your organization lacks the necessary resources, try recruiting external teams with platform development experience. There are many vendors that provide their services, and you may employ them from anywhere in the world. However, the major needs for vendors in this scenario should be dependability, resource availability, past portfolios, and references from former clients.
Analyze opportunities
Investigate existing technology implementation alternatives, particularly those in other industries such as banking and insurance. You should understand how effective the present use cases are and select the one that is best appropriate for your firm.
Winding Up
The use of blockchain in medicines is only getting started, and there is still a long road ahead. A well-developed platform, on the other hand, may alter how businesses interact and collaborate with one another, as well as how they offer services to clients.
As a result, businesses should think about this option and begin analyzing how it might help them enhance their workflow. Healthcare software companies like Healimpilo understand how to build and deploy solutions that improve enterprise performance in the pharma sector.
