Supply chain & logistics
Blockchain enhances pharmaceutical supply chains by preventing counterfeit drugs and improving traceability, but its wider adoption faces cost and system compatitbility challenges.
Even if the battle is won within the mindset of an organisation and teams with sufficient expertise are on board, blockchain doesn’t make sense in isolation. Ensuring scalability and interoperability for distributing products across a fragmented and complex global supply chain is a massive challenge. How do you enable legacy systems to read and write the data, and is the expertise and willingness available to implement this? How will the platforms communicate with one another in varying geographical regions of the world when there’s no common standard?
“The future of this technology lies in its interoperability and scalability,” says Popa. “One platform should be able to fit more than one use case and integrate with legacy systems. It should also be able to welcome new entrants and write and read their data when they join.” To move forward, businesses need to envisage sufficient return on their investment (ROI). Getting the use case right is key to getting good ROI, according to Popa, who believes not being able to quantify use cases is a barrier to adoption. “There are so many variations of this technology
and it’s use-case specific, so it’s important for manufacturers to consider the issues they’re trying to solve to find if they really have a use case for it. Because there isn’t always one,” says Popa. “For example, are there issues with counterfeit drugs in your business? Because you can make a case for transparency being an ROI when legitimate products are being diverted and replaced with counterfeit ones but it’s hard to quantify transparency as an ROI when that’s not the case. Yes, transparency preserves brand reputation and protects patients, but will these outcomes alone justify the investment? If you’re not able to quantify it, does it really bring the ROI?”
Popa also predicts that advances in machine learning and AI will help to analyse data and
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optimise product flow and supply chain routes in the future.
“The technology has been getting more traction since AI emerged. AI will speed up the adoption of digital twins because it can help to make meaning out of the vast amounts of data they will generate.” However, this can’t really take off in a meaningful way until solutions for scalability and interoperability have been found.
Blockchain gaining traction While it’s still early days for blockchain in the pharmaceutical industry, it is not short of attention. “It’s moved beyond the pilot stage now and
it’s getting more industry attention,” says Popa. “Companies have been collaborating to address issues such as traceability, for example, and there are some great clinical trials and initiatives on use cases.” He cited eConsent as a promising application of blockchain in the clinical trials area, where the technology is used to ensure transparency, security, and tamper-proof patient consent records. This is designed to help improve compliance, enhance patient trust, and streamline the consent management process across multiple stakeholders. When asked about industry consortiums working towards healthcare industry standards for blockchain solutions, Popa cited the PharmaLedger Association. This Swiss-based non-profit organisation emerged from a three-year EU-funded initiative that explored blockchain’s potential in areas such as supply chain management, clinical trials, and health data. It is setting up pilots for track-and-trace use cases and has a live use case on electronic patient information. “Blockchain is getting traction but it is still mostly in a tribalised manner,” says Popa. “It’s in everyone’s interest to enter this system. In the long term, everyone will benefit and have a piece of the pie through collaboration.” ●
World Pharmaceutical Frontiers /
www.worldpharmaceuticals.net
Pand P Studio; octopusaga; Aha-Soft/
Shutterstock.com
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