Blockchain-Enabled Solutions for the Pharmaceutical Industry

19Drug Recall Management for Pharmaceutical Industry from Blockchain Perspective

S. Mahirah^1*, B. Geetha¹, N. Harikrishnan¹ and S. Preethi Priyadarshini²

¹Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Dr. M. G. R. Educational and Research Institute, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

²School of Pharmacy, College of Health and Medical Science, Haramaya University, Harar, Oromia Region, Ethiopia

Abstract

A drug recall system is one of the effective ways to prevent consumers from consuming defective or potentially hazardous products. It is decided by the manufacturer to recall the defective products from the market once they identify any defect or harmfulness in the manufactured product. Recalls are done if the product is contaminated, cross-contaminated, and if any physical changes are found which could cause improper dosing, bacterial contamination, lab mix-ups, specifications are not as required, etc. Thus, drug recalling becomes more important in the pharmaceutical industry. Conventional recall methods are time consuming, highly expensive, and not much effective to employ when recalling a product from all the levels in the market where it has reached. The blockchain system enables effective handling of both forward and backward chain of supply. The forward chain model eases the supply of drug until the end user in a lesser span of time. The backward chain model enables the recall of drugs from the market. The transaction data at all stages involved in the supply chain ...