ONLINE REGISTRATION OF PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANY AND DRUG VERIFICATION SYSTEM

ONLINE REGISTRATION OF PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANY AND DRUG VERIFICATION SYSTEM

CHAPITRE ONE

1.0 INVESTIGATION

Brand owners make products, which are then given to third parties (contract manufacturers, shipping companies, distributors, etc.) for delivery to merchants for eventual sale to customers. These products can range from commodity things (for example, flour) to limited quantity “luxury” items (for example, designer handbags) to one-of-a-kind items (for example, unique artwork). Counterfeit goods are frequently manufactured and sold as the “real thing.” Counterfeits use the genuine brand but have cheaper overhead as a result of a combination of lower quality, lower marketing expenses, lower support costs, and/or lower corporate expenses (varying from lower labor costs to failure to pay tariffs).

The distribution of counterfeits affects the three primary parties (brand owner, merchant, and customer) in distinct ways. Consumers either knowingly purchase counterfeits at a reduced cost or are duped into purchasing counterfeit products believing they are purchasing legitimate merchandise. In the former instance, they are generally content, at least at first. In some cases, the latter condition may have no impact, i.e., the consumer may have overpaid for an item. However, if the product fails, the consequences could be far-reaching. These impacts can range from a lack of redress (because the product is not covered by the brand owner’s or manufacturer’s warranty) to actual injury in the case of food, prescription pharmaceuticals, mechanical equipment, and so on. Merchants and third parties may actively or unknowingly participate in the distribution of counterfeit goods. Counterfeit products cause both hard (decreased earnings) and soft (brand degradation) losses to brand owners.

This study describes a method that allows brand owners, retailers, and customers to authenticate a product’s legitimacy. It examines the various attack vectors and proposes three viable system implementations based on the motivation of the participants and the cost of implementation. The study assumes the reader is familiar with the manufacture and dissemination of counterfeit goods.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The major and core issue that gave rise to this research work is that most pharmaceutical drug users want to use original product but because fake and counterfeit drugs now do not allow one to differentiate from the original, and the process of verifying a product currently is not encouraging because it will take a long time and before then, the ill person is supposed to take his medication, which means that the verification process is slow and nebulous. This is the problem that the research aims to answer by creating a more secure and dependable system than the previous one.

1.3 The Study’s Objective

The project’s main goal is to make it easier for consumers and regulatory bodies to create medicine authentication and protect consumers’ health and safety. The following objectives have been established to help achieve the goal:

A web-based site that allows citizens to examine the legitimacy of pharmaceuticals and the existence of pharmaceutical companies in the country.

Tracking and tracking of medications manufactured in order to assure a consistent supply of drugs to customers for patient safety and manufacturer and nation brand protection

The consumer will be provided with information such as the name of the drug, the name of the manufacturer, the batch number, the date of manufacture, the date of expiry, the usage of the drug (optional), and the composition of the drug (optional).

Provide required assistance to regulatory agencies in the prevention of counterfeiting, fraud, and illegal medicine sales.

1.4 Importance of the Research

This study will show the significance of drug validity and authenticity to our health in a clear and concise manner. It is expected that if this research is fully implemented, it will aid in lowering the rate of counterfeit drug production and consumption among individuals. It is also believed that the study will assist the makers of these pharmaceuticals, i.e. the original company and industry, because they will have greater sales when citizens choose the authentic over the counterfeit.

The software produced as a result of this study will be valuable to end users or customers in assisting them to check the pharmaceuticals they purchase for medication. The findings are expected to reveal the market’s phony medication vendors as well as the manufacturing companies. The pharmaceutical business will learn more as a result of this exposure and will continue to provide high-quality products. It is probable that as a result of this conclusion, the bogus pharmaceutical industry will realistically adjust to the World Health Organization (WHO) production standard.

As a result, it will go a long way toward increasing computer science students’ usefulness in society by allowing them to put what they have learned into practice, thereby contributing to the building of society at the local, national, and international levels.

The researcher will benefit from the research as well. This is due to the fact that the study would expose the researcher to so many linked areas during the course of his investigation. This will broaden the researcher’s experience, knowledge, and comprehension of real-world application and problem-solving strategies.

1.5 The scope of the research

The Drug Verification and Authentication System Project is a researcher initiative to ensure the genuineness and authenticity of drugs used within the country imported from any part of the country to ours (Nigeria), primarily from India, and for citizens in the domestic market. The initiative encompasses all medications sold in Nigeria.

1.6 The Study’s Limitations

The difficulties in adopting this system, as well as its expense, are discussed further below.

a) Pharmaceutical Industry Diversification

Nigerian pharmaceutical medications are primarily sourced from the Indian pharmaceutical business, which has over 20,000 registered units and is extremely fragmented, with severe price rivalry and government price control. The pharmaceutical business in India is comprised of around 250 large units and over 8,000 small and medium scale units. The massive units are technically and professionally qualified. However, medium and small producers will be unable to pay to deploy this drug verification information system (DVI system). As a result, this will be a major obstacle in putting this system in place.

b) Implementation of a mechanism for unique product identification

RFID, 1D or 2D Bar Codes, Holograms, Forensic taggants – Optical taggants, Micro-particle taggants (nano taggants), and other active and passive technologies are available. To implement a robust and effective solution to achieve both objectives of ‘Drug Authentication’ and ‘Verification,’ a globally accepted solution for uniquely identifying the product that is easily accessible, less space consuming for printing, and cost effective for all three levels of packaging, namely Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary, was required. The primary package is in direct physical contact with the active ingredient, the secondary package is a carton containing one or more primary packs, including a mono carton carrying one primary pack, and the tertiary package is a shipper having one or more secondary packs.

c) Financial Consequences and Overhead for Manufacturers

The financial consequences and expenditure required for system adoption were key concerns for the pharmaceutical industry, particularly for small and medium-sized producers in the country.

1.7 Definitions of Terms

Database: A collection of logically related data used to suit an organization’s information needs.

Web: An online platform for viewing and accessing web pages and information.

DBMS: Database Management Software, which allows the user to define, manage, and control the database.

A computer program that interacts with a database is known as an application program.

MENU: A list of alternatives displayed on the screen, each identifiable by a short code followed by a lengthy description of its purpose.

A drug is defined as a pharmaceutical or chemical substance that is supplied to patients for curative purposes.

A pharmacy is a room at a hospital where medicines and chemicals are housed, stored, and manufactured.

Flowchart: A diagram that depicts the relationship between the various stages of the system’s process.

A relation is a named table that has columns and rows. An attribute is a named column in a relation. Domain; A list of valid values for one or more tables.

Database design: The process of developing a design that will support the mission statement and mission-critical database e system.

Software: These are computer programs that allow specific tasks to be completed, such as word processing.

Hardware: Computer equipment utilized to process input and trigger system output.

Management information system: a collection of people, databases, and technologies designed to provide routine information to an organization’s managers and decision makers.