Thesis (70 pages in total. From page 0 to 57 the work is done just needs review
Thesis (70 pages in total. From page 0 to 57 the work is done just needs review and minor changes).
PharmaHash: A Hashgraph-Based Framework for Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Management Abstract The pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) faces various challenges, including issues related to procurement, distribution, and quality assurance. The KRI healthcare system has been significantly impacted by decades of conflict and instability, leading to disruptions in supply chains and shortages of essential medicines. Additionally, inadequate infrastructure, regulatory frameworks and the absence of digitalization contribute to inefficiencies in the distribution of pharmaceutical product. One of the most pressing issues facing the pharmaceutical sector in Iraq, including the KRI, is the proliferation of counterfeit drugs. On the other hand, SCM in general and PSCM in particular are going through a transition phase towards e-commerce and digitalization in KRI. Digitalizing the PSCM and using smart contracts will contribute to facilitate business processes and prevent falsified products to smuggle into the PSCM system, however, it introduces a range of complexities, challenges and raises concerns about data security. Therefore, it is crucial for the Ministry of Health (MOH), business managers and their stakeholders to understand the importance of keeping their data protected and their systems secured with the latest developed technologies. Hash graph is a distributed ledger technology that provides high security and efficiency with its consensus algorithm, that could be a robust tool to ensure the security and integrity of data of the PSC transactions. Therefore, this study aims to develop ‘PharmaHash’ a Hashgraph-Based Framework for PSCMSs, which facilitates to streamlining business processes. The mandate of the research is to achieve linking the existing gaps of pharmaceutical supply chain management system and the solutions of Hash graph technology. It is envisaged that the outcome of the research will provide comprehensive knowledge for pharmaceutical industry, That will steer the business systems towards trusted and protected systems, tailored to the needs of business managers and consumers. 1. Introduction Within the Healthcare Cyber Physical System (H-CPS), the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain (PSC) is essential in ensuring that essential pharmaceuticals of the right amount and quality are delivered on time to the people in need[]. The pharmaceutical industry plays a critical role in ensuring public health by providing access to essential medications[]. Furthermore, to effectively deliver goods or services from suppliers to customers, Supply Chain Management (SCM) in the pharmaceutical industry, entails supervising the planning, sourcing, manufacturing, transportation, distribution, retail, and return management operations. Through resource optimization and promoting cooperation throughout the whole supply chain, it seeks to produce value. However, the effectiveness of pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC) is often hampered by various challenges, particularly in fragile context like KRI, marked by corruption. Decades of turmoil have disrupted supply chains, leading to shortages of vital medicines, compromising healthcare delivery and the increase of counterfeit dugs. Exacerbating the challenges faced by the pharmaceutical industry, counterfeit medicines are prevalent in the Iraqi market, with a significant percentage of drugs being of substandard quality or outright falsified[]. Worldwide, one of the most common and immediate threats is introduction of counterfeits into the supply chain by malicious entities. These counterfeits contain from inefficient ingredients to placebos or drugs manufactured in substandard conditions, and even more lethal, repackaging expired drugs and introducing them into the supply chain. These counterfeit drugs not only fail to provide the intended therapeutic effect but also pose serious health risks to patients, including treatment failure, drug resistance, adverse reactions and death. International agencies like as the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Union (EU), and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) work together to combat this illicit activity and protect patient safety in order to solve this issue. WHO estimates indicate that counterfeit drugs account for 10 to 15 percent of the world′s medication supply and a startling 30 percent in developing countries, counterfeit medicines represent a serious worldwide threat. Unfortunately, malaria alone claims the lives of almost 200,000 people each year due to counterfeit medications. Because of the continued technical improvements that have made this illegal enterprise successful in the past, the FBI has declared counterfeiting to be the crime of the twenty-first century. With efficient manufacture and delivery, counterfeit products have grown to be one of the biggest global illicit industries, with an annual worth of over US$ 600 billion. The pharmaceutical sector needs a strong supply chain management system to counter this threat. Acknowledging the growing issue and the necessity for remedies, the pharmaceutical sector globally has put in place a number of initiatives. Stricter rules, cold-chain shipment monitoring, pricing limits on presсrіption pharmaceuticals, improved supply chain visibility, and serialized demands are a few of them. The objective of these endeavors is to alleviate the consequences of fake medications and guarantee the authenticity and security of pharmaceutical items for individuals throughout the globe. In the Kurdistan Region, business processes are in their early stages of transformative shift towards digitalization and e-commerce, aiming to enhance the efficiency of supply chain management (SCM). However, a number of backstopping accompany these new business models including third party risks, insider threats, system gaps, cyber-attacks, and data breaches. While being aware of that the SCM is a dynamic business environment and requires continuous changes and adaptions, data integrity and system security need to be well planned considering the specific context of KRI and the available resources.