How barcodes ensure the correct medicine is distributed

The global fight against counterfeit medicines has intensified and barcodes play a key role. While Scandinavia has a high level of drug safety, this is far from the case in Central Asia and Africa. Something needs to be done. Read here, Jesper Kervin Franke's story about how the road to better safety with GS1's systems works.

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‍1. The barcode is unique

Each barcode has a unique data combination that is protected and has special security controls. More and more pharmaceutical markets are implementing this mindset. GS1 provides a data matrix barcode that has significantly greater data capacity than the 'fence barcode' you see on many products today.

- To the untrained eye, the barcode may look like a QR code, but they are actually two very different types of barcodes, says Jesper Kervin Franke.

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‍2. Systematization starts with the manufacturer

At the manufacturer Novo Nordisk, Lundbeck or others, the medicine is produced that can make sick people well or improve people's lives in general. The medicine is placed in a box and a data matrix barcode is applied, and from here the systematization begins. The manufacturer collects a series of data about each medicine package that will be used later in the handling of the packages.

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3. Datamatrix keeps security in check

Datamatrix barcodes contain an expiration date and batch number. The expiration date can be used to ensure that a pharmacist or individual staff member in a hospital does not accidentally dispense medicine that is too old. Medicines are made up of several tiny components. The batch/lot number is used to keep track of which raw materials are used to produce the medicine in the box.

- When Lundbeck, for example, replaces a box from a subcontractor, they also immediately change the number that identifies the individual components in a pill. A few years ago, when a pharmaceutical company was notified that one of the components was defective, there would be nothing to do but recall the previous weeks' shipments and apologize. This is no longer the case. Today, the individual components can be effectively traced in the batch/lot number via barcode registrations, Jesper explains.

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4. EU requirements for delivery and reception

Already upon delivery, the barcode helps ensure that the right medicines are received by a pharmacist or hospital pharmacist. The barcode makes it clear what the package contains, while EU requirements mean that the box cannot be opened and closed without it being clearly visible. This ensures that no one with malicious intent could have gotten their hands on the medicine and copied it into something that can 'just' be sold.

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5. Security control via a serial number

Every single package sent out contains a unique and randomly generated serial number in the barcode. This is crucial because information and data is collected and used to see which packages have been released. The pharmacist uses the barcode, including the serial number, to ensure that the product comes from the manufacturer.

- In other words, no packs are distributed where the manufacturer does not stand behind the serial number. Just three years ago, criminals could buy a box and put it into production with something that looked like the real thing, but you can't do that anymore because you can't get around the system because of the specific IDs that the serial number guarantees on each box, says Jesper.

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6. Robotics increases efficiency

A side benefit of ensuring that the medicine on the world market is genuine is that we are moving towards more efficient and digital systems. Aarhus University Hospital and Akershus University Hospital already have pharmacy robots that receive the prescriptions and then quickly pour the medicine into packages before sending them out to the wards. When filling the robot, they use barcodes, while the machine also prints barcodes with information for the nurses about the product and which patient should receive what.

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7. patient safety

Nurses also use the barcode to ensure that the right medicine in the right strength is given to the right patient at the right time.

- Preventing so-called 'mix-ups' is important for patient safety. The majority of adverse events occur when handling medication, and the barcodes can help ensure fewer errors, Jesper explains.