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Munasinghe UJ, Halgamuge MN. Supply chain traceability and counterfeit detection of COVID-19 vaccines using novel blockchain-based Vacledger system. EXPERT SYSTEMS WITH APPLICATIONS 2023; 228:120293. [PMID: 37197005 PMCID: PMC10168198 DOI: 10.1016/j.eswa.2023.120293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2022] [Revised: 03/18/2023] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
We propose a novel framework, Vacledger, for supply chain traceability and counterfeit detection of COVID-19 vaccines using a blockchain network. It includes four smart contracts on a private-permissioned blockchain network for supply chain traceability and counterfeit detection of COVID-19 vaccine, more specifically to (i) handle the rules and regulations of vaccine importing countries and provide authorization for cross the borders (regulatory compliance and border authorization smart contract), (ii) register new and imported vaccines in the Vacledger system (vaccine registration smart contract), (iii) find the number of stocks that have arrived in the Vacledger system (stock accumulation smart contract), and (iv) identify the exact location of the stock (location tracing update smart contract). Our results show that the proposed system keeps track of all activities, events, transactions, and all other past transactions, permanently stored in an immutable Vacledger connected to decentralized peer-to-peer file systems. We observe no algorithm complexity differences between the proposed Vacledger system and existing supply chain frameworks based on different blockchain types. In addition, based on four use cases, we estimate our model's overall gasoline cost (transaction or gas price). The Vacledger system empowers distribution companies to manage their supply chain operations effectively and securely using an in-network, permissioned distributed network. This study employs the COVID-19 vaccine supply chain (the healthcare industry) to demonstrate how the proposed Vacledger system operates. Despite this, our proposed approach might be implemented in other supply chain industries, such as the food industry, energy trading, and commodity transactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Uvini J Munasinghe
- School of Computing and Mathematics, Charles Sturt University, VIC 3000, Australia
| | - Malka N Halgamuge
- Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, RMIT University, VIC 3000, Australia
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Ahmad RW, Salah K, Jayaraman R, Yaqoob I, Ellahham S, Omar M. Blockchain and COVID-19 pandemic: applications and challenges. CLUSTER COMPUTING 2023; 26:1-26. [PMID: 37359060 PMCID: PMC10148614 DOI: 10.1007/s10586-023-04009-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2022] [Revised: 04/02/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
The year 2020 has witnessed the emergence of coronavirus (COVID-19) that has rapidly spread and adversely affected the global economy, health, and human lives. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the limitations of existing healthcare systems regarding their inadequacy to timely and efficiently handle public health emergencies. A large portion of today's healthcare systems are centralized and fall short in providing necessary information security and privacy, data immutability, transparency, and traceability features to detect fraud related to COVID-19 vaccination certification, and anti-body testing. Blockchain technology can assist in combating the COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring safe and reliable medical supplies, accurate identification of virus hot spots, and establishing data provenance to verify the genuineness of personal protective equipment. This paper discusses the potential blockchain applications for the COVID-19 pandemic. It presents the high-level design of three blockchain-based systems to enable governments and medical professionals to efficiently handle health emergencies caused by COVID-19. It discusses the important ongoing blockchain-based research projects, use cases, and case studies to demonstrate the adoption of blockchain technology for COVID-19. Finally, it identifies and discusses future research challenges, along with their key causes and guidelines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raja Wasim Ahmad
- College of Engineering and Information Technology, Ajman University, Ajman, UAE
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE
| | - Khaled Salah
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE
| | - Raja Jayaraman
- Department of Industrial and System Engineering, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE
| | - Ibrar Yaqoob
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE
| | - Samer Ellahham
- Heart and Vascular Institute, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, UAE
| | - Mohammed Omar
- Department of Industrial and System Engineering, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE
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Zang S, Zhang X, Xing Y, Chen J, Lin L, Hou Z. Applications of Social Media and Digital Technologies in COVID-19 Vaccination: Scoping Review. J Med Internet Res 2023; 25:e40057. [PMID: 36649235 PMCID: PMC9924059 DOI: 10.2196/40057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2022] [Revised: 12/18/2022] [Accepted: 01/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Social media and digital technologies have played essential roles in disseminating information and promoting vaccination during the COVID-19 pandemic. There is a need to summarize the applications and analytical techniques of social media and digital technologies in monitoring vaccine attitudes and administering COVID-19 vaccines. OBJECTIVE We aimed to synthesize the global evidence on the applications of social media and digital technologies in COVID-19 vaccination and to explore their avenues to promote COVID-19 vaccination. METHODS We searched 6 databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase, EBSCO, and IEEE Xplore) for English-language articles from December 2019 to August 2022. The search terms covered keywords relating to social media, digital technology, and COVID-19 vaccines. Articles were included if they provided original descriptions of applications of social media or digital health technologies/solutions in COVID-19 vaccination. Conference abstracts, editorials, letters, commentaries, correspondence articles, study protocols, and reviews were excluded. A modified version of the Appraisal Tool for Cross-Sectional Studies (AXIS tool) was used to evaluate the quality of social media-related studies. The review was undertaken with the guidance of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews. RESULTS A total of 178 articles were included in our review, including 114 social media articles and 64 digital technology articles. Social media has been applied for sentiment/emotion analysis, topic analysis, behavioral analysis, dissemination and engagement analysis, and information quality analysis around COVID-19 vaccination. Of these, sentiment analysis and topic analysis were the most common, with social media data being primarily analyzed by lexicon-based and machine learning techniques. The accuracy and reliability of information on social media can seriously affect public attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines, and misinformation often leads to vaccine hesitancy. Digital technologies have been applied to determine the COVID-19 vaccination strategy, predict the vaccination process, optimize vaccine distribution and delivery, provide safe and transparent vaccination certificates, and perform postvaccination surveillance. The applied digital technologies included algorithms, blockchain, mobile health, the Internet of Things, and other technologies, although with some barriers to their popularization. CONCLUSIONS The applications of social media and digital technologies in addressing COVID-19 vaccination-related issues represent an irreversible trend. Attention should be paid to the ethical issues and health inequities arising from the digital divide while applying and promoting these technologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shujie Zang
- School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Global Health Institute, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xu Zhang
- School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Global Health Institute, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yuting Xing
- School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Global Health Institute, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jiaxian Chen
- School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Leesa Lin
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
- Laboratory of Data Discovery for Health (D24H), Hong Kong Science Park, Hong Kong, SAR, China
| | - Zhiyuan Hou
- School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Global Health Institute, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
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Hu H, Xu J, Liu M, Lim MK. Vaccine supply chain management: An intelligent system utilizing blockchain, IoT and machine learning. JOURNAL OF BUSINESS RESEARCH 2023; 156:113480. [PMID: 36506475 PMCID: PMC9718486 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.113480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Vaccination offers health, economic, and social benefits. However, three major issues-vaccine quality, demand forecasting, and trust among stakeholders-persist in the vaccine supply chain (VSC), leading to inefficiencies. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated weaknesses in the VSC, while presenting opportunities to apply digital technologies to manage it. For the first time, this study establishes an intelligent VSC management system that provides decision support for VSC management during the COVID-19 pandemic. The system combines blockchain, internet of things (IoT), and machine learning that effectively address the three issues in the VSC. The transparency of blockchain ensures trust among stakeholders. The real-time monitoring of vaccine status by the IoT ensures vaccine quality. Machine learning predicts vaccine demand and conducts sentiment analysis on vaccine reviews to help companies improve vaccine quality. The present study also reveals the implications for the management of supply chains, businesses, and government.
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Key Words
- BILSTM, Bidirectional Long-Short Term Memory
- Blockchain
- CNN, Convolutional Neural Network
- COVID-19 pandemic
- DTs, Digital Technologies
- GRU, Gate Recurrent Unit
- IPFS, Interplanetary File System
- Intelligent system
- Internet of things
- IoT, Internet of Things
- LSTM, Long-Short Term Memory
- Machine learning
- RFID, Radio Frequency Identification
- RNN, Recurrent Neural Network
- VSC, Vaccine Supply Chain
- Vaccine supply chain
- dApp, Decentralized Application
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Hu
- Economic Development Research Centre, Wuhan University, China
- School of Economics and Management, Wuhan University, China
| | - Jiajun Xu
- School of Economics and Management, Wuhan University, China
| | - Mengqi Liu
- Business School, Hunan University, China
| | - Ming K Lim
- Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow, UK
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Biswas K, Muthukkumarasamy V, Bai G, Chowdhury MJM. A reliable vaccine tracking and monitoring system for health clinics using blockchain. Sci Rep 2023; 13:570. [PMID: 36631480 PMCID: PMC9833021 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-26029-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Vaccines are delicate biological substances that gradually become inactive over time and must be kept under a recommended temperature range of 2-8 °C for both short and long-term storage. Exposure to heat or freezing temperatures can highly affect the immunological properties of these vaccines and make them completely ineffective. Research shows that vaccine exposure to temperatures outside the recommended range is 33% in developed countries and 37.1% in developing countries. In practice, vaccines are stored in refrigerators, while thermometers and data loggers are used to record and monitor temperatures. However, traditional systems are unreliable due to lack of battery backup, human error, periodic logging of temperatures, etc. Therefore, an effective and reliable vaccine tracking and monitoring system is urgently needed. This paper proposes a blockchain-based, smart contract enabled solution that ensures an enhanced level of security, transparency, and traceability of stored vaccines in a health clinic, and enables the complete history of every vaccine to be checked from the day the vaccine is received by the health clinic to the date it is used or expires. We also formally analyze the resiliency of the proposed system against several attacks and compare the system with existing blockchain and non-blockchain-based solutions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kamanashis Biswas
- Australian Catholic University, Brisbane, Australia. .,Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia.
| | | | - Guangdong Bai
- grid.1003.20000 0000 9320 7537The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
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Rinaldi M, Turino MA, Fera M, Macchiaroli R. Improving the distribution of covid-19 vaccines using the blockchain technology: the Italian case study. PROCEDIA COMPUTER SCIENCE 2023; 217:366-375. [PMID: 36687283 PMCID: PMC9836492 DOI: 10.1016/j.procs.2022.12.232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Vaccination is one of the most effective ways to prevent and control the outbreak of infectious diseases. The vaccine supply chain differs from the traditional supply chains because of the perishability of the products, which need strict transport and warehousing conditions to guarantee the health and safety of people. In addition, in case of pandemics, the big amount of doses requested for the implementation of a mass vaccination campaign forces governments to design a proper logistic network and plan a rapid and efficient distribution of vaccines. This paper studies the organization of allocation and distribution of the covid-19 vaccines in Italy. The main criticalities in managing the vaccine supply chain have been identified and, because of its peculiarities, the blockchain has been considered a suitable technology to solve them. A simulation model has been developed to reproduce the current distribution of vaccines in Italy, and a future scenario with blockchain has been studied. The findings show that it is possible to improve the performance of the vaccine supply chain and make it more resilient by implementing the blockchain technology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Rinaldi
- University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Department of Engineering, via Roma 29, Aversa 81031, Italy
| | - Maria Antonietta Turino
- University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Department of Engineering, via Roma 29, Aversa 81031, Italy
| | - Marcello Fera
- University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Department of Engineering, via Roma 29, Aversa 81031, Italy
| | - Roberto Macchiaroli
- University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Department of Engineering, via Roma 29, Aversa 81031, Italy
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Odoom J, Huang X, Danso SA. COVID-19 and future pandemics: A blockchain-based privacy-aware secure borderless travel solution from electronic health records. SOFTWARE: PRACTICE & EXPERIENCE 2022; 52:2263-2287. [PMID: 35942331 PMCID: PMC9350142 DOI: 10.1002/spe.3126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Revised: 06/22/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
COVID-19 pandemic undoubtedly lingers on and has brought unprecedented changes globally including travel arrangements. Blockchain-based solutions have been proposed to aid travel amid the pandemic hap. Presently, extant solutions are country or regional-based, downplay privacy, non-responsive, often impractical, and come with blockchain-related complexities presenting technological hurdle for travelers. We therefore propose a solution namely, Borderless to foster global travel allowing travelers and countries collaboratively engage in a secure adaptive proof protocol dubbed Proof-of-COVID-19 status a number of arbitrary statements to ascertain the fact that the traveler poses no danger irrespective of the country located. As far as we know, this is first of its kind. Borderless is implemented as a decentralized application leveraging blockchain as a trust anchor and decentralized storage technology. Security analysis and evaluation are performed proving security, privacy-preservation, and cost-effectiveness along with implementation envisioning it as a blueprint to facilitate cross-border travel during the present and future pandemics. Our experimental results show it takes less than 60 and 3 s to onboard users and perform proof verification respectively attesting to real usability scenarios along with the traits of arbitrary proofs to aid responsiveness to the dynamics of pandemics and blockchain abstraction from travelers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justice Odoom
- Department of Computer Science and TechnologySouthwest University of Science and TechnologyMianyangSichuanChina
| | - Xiaofang Huang
- Department of Computer Science and TechnologySouthwest University of Science and TechnologyMianyangSichuanChina
| | - Samuel Akwasi Danso
- Department of Computer ScienceGhana Communication Technology UniversityAccraGhana
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Abstract
The COVID-19 vaccine distribution chain faced multiple challenges associated with the lack of production capacity, security issues, and miscommunication between different actors. Blockchain technology has been shown to solve the security and miscommunication issues in other industries. We first identify distribution chain challenges via literature reviews and primary interviews. Case studies that solved these challenges in other industries also served as a source. This information allowed us to devise a blockchain framework for the vaccine distribution chain and evaluate its application feasibility. We present the framework using data flow diagrams. The proposed framework helps minimize the circulation of counterfeit vaccines and vaccination records, improves communication between stakeholders in the distribution chain, increases supply chain security, and simplifies vaccine inventorying and handling processes.
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Benefits and use of blockchain technology to support supply chain during COVID-19. LESSONS FROM COVID-19 2022. [PMCID: PMC9347267 DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-323-99878-9.00003-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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A Blockchain-Based Approach for COVID-19 Vaccine Lifecycle. ENTERP INF SYST-UK 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-08965-7_4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Moosavi J, Bakhshi J, Martek I. The application of industry 4.0 technologies in pandemic management: Literature review and case study. HEALTHCARE ANALYTICS (NEW YORK, N.Y.) 2021; 1:100008. [PMID: 36618951 PMCID: PMC8529533 DOI: 10.1016/j.health.2021.100008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2021] [Revised: 10/05/2021] [Accepted: 10/11/2021] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
The Covid-19 pandemic impact on people's lives has been devastating. Around the world, people have been forced to stay home, resorting to the use of digital technologies in an effort to continue their life and work as best they can. Covid-19 has thus accelerated society's digital transformation towards Industry 4.0 (the fourth industrial revolution). Using scientometric analysis, this study presents a systematic literature review of the themes within Industry 4.0. Thematic analysis reveals that the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cloud computing, Machine learning, Security, Big Data, Blockchain, Deep learning, Digitalization, and Cyber-physical system (CPS) to be the key technologies associated with Industry 4.0. Subsequently, a case study using Industry 4.0 technologies to manage the Covid-19 pandemic is discussed. In conclusion, Covid-19,is clearly shown to be an accelerant in the progression towards Industry 4.0. Moreover, the technologies of this digital transformation can be expected to be invoked in the management of future pandemics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Javid Moosavi
- School of the Built Environment, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney 2007, Australia
| | - Javad Bakhshi
- School of Project Management, The University of Sydney, Sydney 2006, Australia
| | - Igor Martek
- School of Architecture and Built Environment, Deakin University, Geelong VIC 3220, Australia
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Blockchain as an enabling technology in the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review. HEALTH AND TECHNOLOGY 2021; 11:1369-1382. [PMID: 34513552 PMCID: PMC8421063 DOI: 10.1007/s12553-021-00593-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Accepted: 08/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The impacts caused by the unprecedented transmission of COVID-19 have given rise to new challenges that are shaking the structures of humanity. Several enabling technologies are currently being used as key strategies in creating improvements and responses to the difficulties created by the pandemic and blockchain is one of these solution proposals. Within this scenario, this work aims to study and analyze how the blockchain technology can help in the struggle against the COVID-19 pandemic through a systematic review of the literature. Although the study is limited by the moment when the crisis is still in progress, the results show that it is clear that the adoption of the blockchain can effectively help in the fight against the coronavirus, considering that the main features of the blockchain can support the successful implementation of many use cases. This paper has the role of assisting academics and professionals in identifying the application focus of the blockchain, as well as showing the main opportunities and challenges and the relevance of the subject to the current context of the pandemic.
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