Tracking and tracing in the supply chain

The Supply Chain

The Healthcare supply chain... ... and its benefits when standardising information flow with the EAN.UCC System

The Healthcare Supply Chain is illustrated as below. It combines in the most efficient way Data Definitions, Data Carriers and Electronic Messages.

When ordering Medical Devices from its supplier, the hospital uses a standardised language : Items are mentioned unambigously with their 'Global Trade Item Number' (GTIN), supplier, Hospital, Delivery Place and Billing Address are communicated with their respective 'Global Location Number' (GLN); this is all included in an electronic message ('ORDERS').
After having received the order, the supplier produces a response to the order (electronic message 'ORDRSP') in which it will confirm that it received the order, indicating if each product is available for the requested delivery. The supplier uses GTIN's and GLN's in this message, which can be interpreted easily by the hospital because of the standardised language.
When shipping the Medical Devices, the supplier sends the electronic despatch advice ('DESADV'), which will also include information about the lot number and expiry date as an attribute for each of the Medical Devices. Receiving this information, the hospital can populate its information system and prepare the physical receipt of the supply.
At the receiving point, hospital staff scan the barcoded label (SSCC) and capture information to compare the order and the physical delivery, and in a later step facilitates the financial transaction. Invoices and payment orders can also be established with GS1 standard electronic messages.

EDI & SSCC The combination of Electronic Data Interchange and physical marking opens optimisation of the receipt process. Comparing the delivery (identified with SSCC) with the electronic message carrying delivery details (DESADV, dispatch advice) makes the receipt process more precise and reduces the time allocation.

ORDERS The "ORDERS" message is, as part of EANCOM, a structured message according the UN/EDIFACT standard. The purpose is to be able to send purchase orders from computers to computers, without human intervention.

DESADV is the dispatch advice. It is part of the EANCOM standardised messages sets. The purpose is that the supplier sends detailed information about the delivery, like i.e. item identification (GTIN), lot number (serial numbers), expiry date, and more if necessary.

SLSRPT is the Sales Report, one of the EANCOM standardised messages set. The purpose of SLSRPT is to communicate to the supplier about stock variations; this enables the supplier in a collaborative way to optimise its stocks and productions.

Global Trade Item Number The GTIN is carried on the items in a barcode (or a RFID tag), to identify the items in a non-ambiguous way, for the sender (supplier) and the receiver (hospital). The data carrier is chosen according the business need and the situation : a large barcode is preferred on a pallet or a carton, and a smaller barcode is preferred on a retail pack, or a single dose (pill or vial).

Global Trade Item Number The GTIN is used in the EDI message to identify a trade item in a non-ambiguous way, for both the sender and the receiver of the message.

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