10 Most Promising Healthcare Supply Chain Management Solution Companies, 2021

VOL 10 ISSUE 03

Safety First

Most Promising

HEALTHCARE

Supply Chain

Management Solution Companies for

2021

Five Health and Safety Precautions That Cold Storage Owners Must Know

Tech Evolve The Impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on the Supply Chain Industry

Chuck Phillips CEO

BIG

INVENTORY

A benchmark of excellence in physical inventories

Healthcare and Supply Chain: A Seamless Integration ealthcare was the only sector on its toes when the coronavirus pandemic invaded worldwide. The pandemic brought the world to a standstill. But for the healthcare establishments and allied sectors to function efficiently, seamless healthcare supply chain management was paramount.

H

of supply chain management companies. Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and blockchain were already being leveraged for efficient services; the pandemic only reinforced its use. It tried and tested the health care ecosystem as it did for no other; yet compelled it to find viable solutions.

Whether during a crisis like the ongoing pandemic or regular functioning, one cannot deny the importance of supply chain companies for a flawless service by the medical and related sectors.

To prevent logistics shortfalls, supply chain management solution providers rolled up their sleeves and made things simpler. Integrating technology to procure and manage products has reduced complications and delay in the services of healthcare supply chain management companies.

With the subsequent lockdowns enforced by governments during the pandemic, the availability of manpower and resources to bridge the demand and supply gap was the biggest challenge for healthcare supply chain companies.

They had to wait for the availability of transportation to deliver the goods in time, lest the delay in logistics proved detrimental to public health. Another challenge was to track the goods sent.

From vast numbers of medical devices and equipment to vaccines, pharmaceuticals, and other materials, including consumables, the supply chain management companies are solely focused on a smooth transition to hospitals.

In today’s circumstances, reducing the surge in demand by improving the supply system is pertinent. During trying times like this, many healthcare supply chain management solution companies rose to the occasion and pepped up their services.

Automation of manual processes is the most resilient way to meet the demand. Cloud-based technology has been aiding in tracking the maintenance and certification records

In our quest to track down the best, we found several healthcare supply chain management solution companies that passed the litmus test and have been marching ahead with their services. These companies have been evolving continuously. There is still a considerable scope for them to develop. This is the right time to spruce up supply chain management solutions or to venture into the business.

Learn more about these solution providers in our latest edition of Insights Care - 10 Most Promising Healthcare Supply Chain Management Solution Companies for 2021.

Have an informative read!

Sumita Sarkar

Editor’s Note

08 Cover Story

CO A Benchmark Of Excellence In Physical Inventories

INVENTORY 32 Safety First

Articles

Five Health and Safety Precautions That Cold Storage Owners Must Know

22 Tech Evolve

The Impact of Arti cial Intelligence (AI) on the Supply Chain Industry

14

18

BLOCKCHAIN FIRM

BIDDANO Helping Streamline the Healthcare Ecosystem

26

PATIENTORY INC.

Delivering the Finest Your Health at your Fingertips Blockchain based Solutions Consolidating Medical Data for Better

NTENTS 36

40

30

STRATMED

SYNTHIUM HEALTH

FROM THE EXPERT

Making Healthcare Ef ciently Viable

Disrupting the Healthcare Supply Chain Space Through a Uni ed Platform

CxO

Editor-in-Chief Senior Editor

Sumita Sarkar Anish Miller

Managing Editor

Abhishaj Sajeev

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Visualiser Art & Design Head Co-designer Art & Picture Editor Business Development Manager Marketing Manager

David King Priyanka Rajage Paul Belin Rohil Shinganapurkar Amy Jones John Smith Sarah Wilson, John Smith, Alex Vincent

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Technical Head Assistant Technical Head Technical Consultants

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Digital Marketing Manager Assistant Digital Marketing Manager SME-SMO Executives

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sales@insightscare.com

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Company Name

Featuring

Description

Biddano Pvt Ltd biddano.com

Talha Shaikh Co-founder and CEO

Offering a unique marketplace for Distributors, Pharmacies, and Hospitals to expand their procurement horizon, Biddano is India’s first B2B healthcare supply-chain platform.

BIG Inventory, Inc. biginv.com

Chuck Phillips CEO

BIG Inventory, Inc. sprang from Electronic Inventory Systems (EIS) which was founded in 1985. EIS served retailers throughout the United States helping them acclimate from financial inventories to UPC based inventories.

Blockchain Firm blockchainfirm.io

Tendulraj, Founder and Managing Director, and Sindu, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer

Blockchain Firm is one of the leading Blockchain-based software solutions and service providers with its roots of expertise running deep into the technology

BroadJump, LLC broadjumpllc.com

David Ricker Founder and CEO

BroadJump is focused on helping hospitals and health systems evolve into a dynamic sourcing model that delivers transformative improvement to current best practices of sourcing.

OnProcess Technology onprocess.com

Richard C. Duke CEO

OnProcess Technology's data-driven service chain solutions transform your post-sales planning, delivery, and recovery for better CX, sustainability, efficiency, and cost-saving.

Patientory, Inc. patientory.com

Chrissa McFarlane CEO and Founder

Patientory empowers its users with actionable insights from health data, incentivizing them to take control of their health outcomes.

RFID Global Solution rfidgs.com

Diana Hage CEO

RFID Global Solution is the leading provider of real-time asset management solutions for the industrial IoT market.

Visi-Trac™, the company's software application, automates tracking and managing IT and capital assets.

Seabright Healthcare Solutions LLC seabrighthealthcare.com

Bryan Hooppaw CEO and Co-founder

Seabright Healthcare Solutions is a healthcare consulting and technology firm which utilizes a unique combination of industry experience, knowledge, and proprietary technology to drive cost savings, eliminate waste, and implement process improvement.

StratMed Services Pvt. Ltd. stratmed.com

Dr. Sameer Ahmed Khan Founder and CEO

StratMed is India's first transparent GPO (Group Purchase Organisation) with a primary focus of rationalising the cost of care delivery.

Synthium Health, Inc synthiumhealth.com

Vijay Reddy CEOng

Synthium Health is a cloud-based, digital information and eCommerce platform engineered exclusively for the healthcare industry.

Cover Story

Chuck Phillips CEO

BIG

INVENTORY A Benchmark Of Excellence In Physical Inventories

“BIG

Inventory’s

growth rate has been double digit for many years and will continue along this path.

“

With its unique and proprietary software, BIG Inventory has positioned itself as the leader in physical inventories in the hospital/healthcare setting.

T

he COVID-19 pandemic and the entailing restrictions and regulations created a bottleneck for numerous industries, and on a global scale. The pandemic’s impact was most brutal for the healthcare industry and the associated sectors, healthcare supply chain management being one among them.

It goes without saying that the importance of the role played by healthcare supply chain management companies is tantamount. From hospitals to pharmaceutical companies, assurance of a seamless functioning of these associated industries can only be achieved through efficient supply chain management.

To give you deeper insights into the delivery of said efficiency, we set out on a voyage to seek the 10 Most Promising Healthcare Supply Chain Management Solution Companies.

Featuring on the cover of this edition is BIG Inventory, Inc., a brand that resonates quality and efficiency across the global supply chain management sector.

A Leading Name With its headquarters in Virginia, US, BIG Inventory has been in business since 1985, starting out servicing national retailers by helping them acclimate from financial accounting to department/class inventories, to internal SKU and eventually to a then little-known standard called UPC.

Beth Phillips COO The inventories included clients you would find in every mall across the US. Eventually, BIG Inventory began helping healthcare facilities and became exclusively dedicated to working exclusively within the healthcare industry.

Today, with its unique and proprietary software, BIG Inventory has positioned itself as the leader in physical inventories in the hospital/healthcare setting. The estimated market share, based on number of inventories performed at different facilities, is growing at the rate to make BIG Inventory not only the technological and system leader but the market share leader.

Locally, BIG Inventory has consecutively been recognized as Best in Class. Whereas nationally, it has been recognized as a Best Healthcare Solutions company including Healthcare Tech Outlook’s Top 10 Supply Chain Management Service Companies.

10 Most Promising Healthcare Supply Chain Management Solution Companies for 2021

BIG Inventory has been in business since 1985, starting out servicing national retailers by helping them acclimate from nancial accounting to department/class inventories, to internal SKU and eventually to a then little-known standard called UPC.

Do not try to be all things to all customers, you will end up being mediocre.

Experience and Expertise “Most of our growth is related to the advantage BIG Inventory’s system brings to the inventory taking solution,” says Chuck Phillips, the CEO. This advantage includes not only cutting-edge technology like real time QA Monitoring by the company’s Quality Assurance Team, but also the dedication of its career-oriented people. These professionals travel throughout the United States servicing hospitals, FEDs, Pharmacies, SurgiCenters, and other Healthcare facilities.

Talking about his professional journey and the team behind BIG Inventory’s ascending growth and success, Chuck says, “I have been in the Physical Inventory industry since 1973, pushing the capabilities, standards and possibilities for the industry all along the way. With Beth Phillips, our COO, we have developed an extraordinary system which aligns with GAAP standards and still meets the needs and demands of the Supply Chain Management and Analytics Team. Our Team is deep with experience including our Director of IT, Justin Wayne and our Director of Sales, Paul Yanopulos.”

Overcoming Adversities Sharing his opinion about the effects of the pandemic on the healthcare supply chain sector, and the challenges that his company came across, Chuck says, “The

pandemic has been an extreme catalyst for change in the supply chain space. Challenges of availability, shipping, and even personnel have amplified shortcomings in fast tracking requisitions and meeting the demands of the Supply Chain end users.”

“Once some availability of supplies opened up, space and product tracking became issues. As demand slowed, distribution and expiration issues came to the forefront. So many ad hoc substitutions by both the buyers and the fulfillment distributors were being made, the facility’s MMIS system couldn’t keep up.”

“This is probably why the demand for our services has greatly increased in the warehouse/storage sector of healthcare,” he adds.

When asked about what advice he’d give to the emerging entrepreneurs in the supply chain space, Chuck said, “My advice would be, find your niche and be the best in that niche. Do not try to be all things to all customers, you will end up being mediocre. This does not mean ignoring technological/industry changes or expanding your niche, it simply means striving to become the standard by which all others are judged.”

BIG Inventory’s growth rate has been double digit for many years and will continue along this path. The company has a strong training program for its new recruits and will throttle its growth so as to maintain its unprecedented quality.

“2021 and beyond will continue this crescendo,” Chuck concluded.

Talha Shaikh Co-Founder and CEO

“

Biddano’s tech platform simplifies order fulfilment for chemists and hospitals by enabling orders from multiple distributors to be easily consolidated into pharmacy-specific deliveries

“

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10 Most Promising Healthcare Supply Chain Management Solution Companies for 2021

BIDDANO Helping Streamline the Healthcare Ecosystem

T

he incongruity between the needy and the needful has always been one of the major challenges faced by the healthcare industry. This hurdle has been especially confronted by the healthcare system in the Indian subcontinent, given the vast geographical diversification, ranging from the Himalayan Mountains to the Coastal plains and everything in between.

Realizing this aperture between the people living in these remote habitats of the nation and the necessary medicine and OTC products, Biddano was formed.

The company was founded in the year 2016, by its Co-Founder and CEO, Talha Shaikh, with an aim to evolve the healthcare logistics and supply chain arena.

In an interview with Insights Care, Talha articulates how Biddano is transforming the healthcare supply chain space with its remotest approach.

Following are the highlights of the interview: Would you please brief our audience about Biddano, its USPs, and the critical aspects of its stronghold within the healthcare supply chain niche?

Biddano is India's leading and only B2B full-stack healthcare supply-chain platform. Biddano's mission is to

revolutionize offline pharma distribution networks by bridging supply-chain gaps between distributors and chemists through its technology platform. It uses the 'plug and expand' model to help distributors manage their demand and supply while expanding their geographical reach and helping pharmacies with better availability.

Biddano's tech platform simplifies order fulfilment for chemists and hospitals by enabling orders from multiple distributors to be easily consolidated into pharmacy-specific deliveries. Biddano's platform helps pharmacies with ‘just-in-time’ procurement of pharma & FMCG SKUs through its virtual inventory app.

With its virtual inventory model, Biddano helps pharmacy shops improve their efficiency and maintain positive cash flow. It has a network of over 20000 chemists across eight cities today. Biddano is targeting to capture a significant market share of the $80 billion pharmacy market across healthcare services and FMCG products.

Tell us more about the solutions that you offer, giving Biddano a distinctive edge to stand out from the competition.

Affordability and accessibility of medicines are the two vital challenges that have affected health and longevity for umpteen Indians. One of the primary reasons is the lack of

organized last-mile delivery of medications to people, especially in remote areas.

So, we incorporated these challenges into one and made it our prime principle to find Biddano as a longterm, ascendible healthcare solution that would enable every citizen to get access to lucrative medicines and OTC products.

We've surrounded ourselves with people who share our vision of becoming one of the most trusted partners in the healthcare industry. The idea is to design an easy-to-use, functional platform for pharmacies and distributors that would add value to the quality of life of the said customers.

Endorsed by the All-India Association of Chemists & Distributors as their exclusive channel partner, Biddano is a category-buster in the healthcare industry. We've achieved a substantial feeling of fulfilment of managing to touch lives and making a difference by attaining critical pharmaceutical and OTC deliveries across cities in the time of need.

As a seasoned business leader, what is your opinion about the effects of the pandemic on the healthcare supply chain sector, and what were the challenges that Biddano came across?

The pandemic indeed disrupted the supply chain sector across segments,

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but the health care supply chain witnessed a huge surge due to a sudden rise in demand for medicines and other medical equipment. There was also a behavioural shift among the consumers that increased the demand significantly in a brief period as most consumers started ordering medicines and essentials online.

However, the stakeholders were unable to meet the burgeoning demand due to certain challenges, including a lack of infrastructure and workforce on the ground. These challenges pushed us to think more creatively to optimize the resources. There was also a need for innovation and tech enhancements to increase efficiency but did not have enough time to launch stable products.

The pandemic also forced several startups in this space to pivot from their core models and begin doing deliveries. The major challenge in this shift to the delivery model was increased attrition amongst the riders as pandemic regulations required less people on the ground to avoid the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

While these were some operational challenges, the segment faced regulatory hurdles, too, as approvals to deliver medicines and essentials took long and were not for everyone in the team. But having said that, Biddano overcame all those hurdles and kept following the only mission "to make medicines accessible and available anytime, anywhere."

With continuous development in AI and ML, what is your prediction about the future of the supply chain solutions niche?

• I believe this decade is about transformation, not innovation. Most of the wheels are already invented, what we need to focus on is optimizing systems and processes. To achieve the highest level of optimization, you need AI & ML.

• The supply chain is no different from any other industry. Especially in India, the healthcare supply chain is highly unorganized and fragmented.

We at Biddano are using ML for route optimization with travel data and traffic locations.

network. We have a few products in the pipeline this year, some of which we have already launched, and a few are coming next quarter.

• In the healthcare supply chain, delivery TAT (Turn Around Time) is the most important KPI. With AI & ML, we have achieved the lowest delivery TAT for B2B supplies which is less than 3 hrs in a 25 km radius.

With all of our products, we are trying to digitally transform the B2B healthcare supply chain and make it more efficient. Existing inefficiencies in the supply chain are increasing the cost of healthcare for the end consumer. We are addressing this problem with all of our service offerings.

• We are now focusing on getting this down to less than 2 hrs with AI, where we will predict demand and supply with geo-spatial data models.

Awards and Recognition • The only company in India which got an endorsement from AIOCD (All India chemist association)

What would be your advice to the entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into the healthcare supply chain solutions space?

• The Healthcare supply chain is vast and full of opportunities; my suggestion to entrepreneurs is to identify the small problems a large audience faces and start building reliable solutions around them.

• Unhitch-Winner of CIE-IIT H & Head start event PAN India

• Entrepreneurs should first focus on building the MVP (minimum viable product) and start executing because many things are unclear on day one.

I have seen many people investing a lot of time trying to find answers to questions that are not relevant to the need of the market.

• Initially, we need to be more agile and adaptive. One should not fall in love with the idea and marry it for a lifetime. Typically, start-ups pivot more than 3-5 times before they find PMF (Product Market Fit).

An Exceptional Leader Talha Shaikh is an Electronics and Communications Engineer and a serial entrepreneur. He founded Biddano in 2016, and before that, he had a technology service start-up that used to develop enterprise technology solutions for various companies in the UK and the USA market. He was involved in creating business development models, brand strategies, and statistics systems. He started his career as a Software Developer with Cognizant Tech Solutions.

He comes from a healthcare background, where his family has a couple of multi-specialty hospitals and chain diagnostic centres. Having many doctors in the family has given him a fair understanding of the healthcare ecosystem from the inside.

How do you envision scaling Biddano’s operations and offerings in 2021?

We plan to scale our operations across 25 cities this year and plan to have over one lac pharmacies in our

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Blockchain Firm Delivering the Finest Blockchain-based Solutions

T

he past few decades were devoted to inventing the things that were considered impossible until they got invented. Blockchain is one of the prominent examples in that list. Blockchain technology has become a must-have option for almost all sectors. The rapid growth of blockchain technology is touching new heights every day.

This technology automated the business processes and augmented the workflow. Almost all sectors are implementing blockchain technology into their business and industries.

The demand for blockchain technology is rising every day and many companies are committed to fulfilling this need.

One such company is Blockchain Firm, which is dedicated to providing blockchain-based solutions.

In an interview with Insights Care, Tendulraj, the Founder and Managing Director, and Sindu, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Blockchain Firm have elaborated on how they are driving change in the healthcare sector with their blockchain solutions. Following are the details of the interview: Please brief our audience about Blockchain Firm, its USPs, and the key aspects of its stronghold within the healthcare supply chain niche.

Blockchain Firm delivers blockchain-based solutions, services, and products for enterprises. Our suite of services extends to mobile application development and crypto services too. We strive to create sustainable blockchain ecosystems for all kinds of industries and help them ease their business models. Our blockchain model for healthcare is an ecosystem that brings together all the participants – doctors, patients, pharmacies, labs, drug manufacturers, and other supply chain participants – in one place.

This ecosystem has all the attributes of blockchain technology that make it highly functional and secure. The

ecosystem is designed to overcome the obstacles that pandemics like COVID-19 would bring us. It paves the way for supply chains to deliver healthcare essentials like drugs & protective equipment faster; improve clinical trials and evaluate tests; provide vaccines & treatments effectively; and remove duplicate products & counterfeiting.

Tell us more about the solutions that you offer, giving Blockchain Firm a distinctive edge to stand out from the competition.

We provide blockchain solutions for all industries that include finance, healthcare, logistics and supply chain management, real estate, voting, e-commerce, insurance, education, digital identity, gaming, and apps. Our solutions are purely designed to solve the current challenges that every industry faces. We also specialize in creating customized solutions based on the client's requirements and the feasibility of their business.

For any business (small business or an industry), adopting blockchain technology isn't just a regular transformation.

There lie many complications that could affect the business model, and that's why those businesses still stay behind the line.

We are ready to end this by developing performanceoriented blockchain platforms that would govern and operate the business as it is, but with added efficiency. Our solutions and services list doesn't end with blockchain. We also assist crypto-based businesses in developing cryptocurrencies (coins & tokens), exchange platforms, payment gateways, wallets, and trading bots as well.

As a seasoned business leader, what is your opinion about the effects of the pandemic on the healthcare supply chain sector, and what were the challenges that Blockchain Firm came across?

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We strive to create sustainable blockchain ecosystems for all kinds of industries and help them ease their business models

Sindu Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer

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Tendulraj Founder & Managing Director

One of the many things that the COVID-19 pandemic proved is, "We need more practical and scalable supply chain systems to balance supply & demand. If there is another outbreak like this one, the whole world could collapse." The healthcare supply chain witnessed huge problems, especially in production and distribution. Almost all participants in the supply chain found it challenging to meet the sudden increase in demand. Besides, interoperability, security, privacy, and traceability also became major concerns for businesses.

All these issues were mainly due to the current supply chain model that focuses only on lowering costs and on-time delivery. And once the pandemic hit the world, these businesses had no choice but to focus on inventory management - the most important method to overcome the disruptions in the supply chain. As a company, the only challenge we faced was making SCM businesses understand the importance of a new supply chain model backed by blockchain technology.

With continuous development in technologies such as AI and ML, what is your prediction about the future of the supply chain solutions niche?

Blockchain has already proved its effectiveness in addressing challenges in the healthcare industry. It provides faster access to data, global data sharing, improving collaboration, and increasing transparency. When AI and ML are integrated into the same, the results would be outstanding. We have already seen many tech giants and industry leaders giving importance to the use of AI & ML in supply chain management.

When AI is introduced to the supply chain, it helps build a powerful network with excellent optimization, improved accuracy & productivity, high quality, and lower costs.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) have all the necessary factors to alter the way the supply chain industry works. The inefficiencies like machine-based errors, manual errors, and uncertainties can be eradicated to a great extent. So, it would be pretty easy and smooth to run a supply chain business powered by blockchain, AI, and ML combined.

What would be your advice to the entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into the healthcare supply chain solutions space?

People who are venturing into the healthcare supply chain space should understand this, "Your business should have excellent scalability and built on modern technologies so that when pandemics like COVID-19 hit you, you can easily deal with the uncertainties in the right way."

How do you envision scaling Blockchain Firm's operations and offerings in 2021?

During the pandemic (and post-pandemic), we saw many companies reducing their size to manage money and other constraints. But we chose to be different. Rather than downsizing, we decided to upsize. We balanced employees' requirements and clients' requirements effectively during the pandemic. While many companies were laying off their employees, we actually brought many new faces to our organization.

We believe that as long as we give good solutions and products to our clients, we will meet the essential part of every business – customer satisfaction. We are currently focusing on developing more sustainable blockchain platforms. And also, we have added more services and solutions to our list. We are currently working on merging blockchain technology with Artificial Intelligence to build a decentralized, robust, and secure platform.

What is your opinion on the future of the supply chain industry considering the evolving customer preferences due to the COVID-19 pandemic?

To be honest, Covid-19 showed companies how they lack efficiency & scalability, how vulnerable their businesses are to risks, and other things. This is a good chance for companies to reevaluate their processes & business models and open up the doors for innovation, opportunities, and digitization in the post-pandemic world. Covid-19 has helped the supply chain, in particular healthcare, to adopt innovative methods in the process. In my opinion, there will be more digital supply chains developed with promising features and customer-centric approaches soon.

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Prominent Leaders •

Tendulraj - Tendulraj is the Founder and Managing Director of Blockchain Firm. His professional journey started in 2013 when he was determined to start his own company that would provide value rather than generate income. He started 'Teekz' to help students and fresh graduates to improve their technical knowledge, skills, and communication through the Studentrepreneur program. After Teekz saw a dramatic success, Tendul wanted to venture into something big and world-changing. And so, he started Blockchain Firm.

•

Sindu - Sindu is the Co-Founder and CEO of Blockchain Firm. She played an equal role similar to Tendul in establishing Teekz and Blockchain Firm.

Sindu's goal is to embrace women in blockchain, and she has been doing it to the fullest. Being a blockchain developer and tech enthusiast, it was her idea to develop sustainable blockchain solutions. Her vision is to make Blockchain Firm a globally recognizable brand with its footprints in various technologies.

•

Accolades The 20 Most Emerging Startups to Watch In 2021 by Innovativezone Super 30 Companies - 2021 by Fortune India Exchange

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A

s the supply chain market is expanding globally and in complexity, the margin for errors is shrinking. On the other hand, the competition is increasing in the digitally connected world, and it has become difficult to maximize production by reducing uncertainties of all kinds. Mounting expectations with the efficiency between suppliers, the industry seeks to use AI for its daily operations.

Artificial Intelligence and machine learning, especially, have already started to change the state of the supply chain industry by enterprising wide visibility into all aspects required and introducing some methodologies that humans cannot imitate in a bigger picture. AI in supply chains is helping to deliver the powerful optimization capabilities that are required for more accurate incapacity planning,

improved productivity, higher quality, lower costs, and greater output, all the while fostering safe working conditions and executing operations like: Accurate Inventory Management Inventory accuracy can give out a precise number of items in and out of the warehouse. There are many procedures involved, like order processing, picking, and packing, which is time-consuming, and there is a high chance of error happening while executing this job. Also, accurate inventory management can help to maintain an ample amount of stock which can help in unexpected stock-outs.

With the efficient tools powered by AI that can manage mass data, these intelligent systems can analyze big

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AI

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databases quickly and guide forecasting supply and demand. AI-powered systems can also predict and discover habits and forecast seasonal demands, resulting in anticipation of future trends as per the customer's demand while reducing the costs of unwanted inventory.

smarter. This helps to execute the tasks within the time limit and thus, maintains the commitment between the supplier and its customer. Automated systems normally accelerate the traditional warehouse procedures and work in a welldesigned manner with minimal effort to execute the job on time.

Warehouse Efficiency AI Driving Effortless Management An efficient warehouse is an integral part of any supply chain, and AI can assist in the timely retrieval of any item from the warehouse and ensure the safe delivery of that item to the customer.

AI systems also solve several warehouse issues more quickly and accurately than a human can; it also helps simplify complex procedures that involve a lot of work and time. AI-driven automation efforts have significantly reduced the need and cost of warehouse staff.

Enhancing Safety AI-based automation tools can ensure intelligent planning and efficient workhouse management, which eventually can enhance the safety of both workers and materials. AI can also analyze the data of the workspace and inform the manufacturers about the possible risks. It can also record stocking limitations and update the operations along with the necessary feedback with risk factors. This helps the manufacturers react swiftly and firmly to keep the operations steady and secure while ensuring the safety of the workers and the materials.

Reducing Operations Cost The biggest benefit of AI systems in the supply chain is reducing operating costs. From customer service to the warehouse, these systems can work error-free for a longer time and execute the tasks quickly and efficiently, eventually reducing the time, errors, and workplace incidents. The robotics involved in warehouse operations provides greater speed and accuracy, resulting in increasing the productivity of working.

By implementing AI systems, supply chain managers can enhance their decision-making by predicting the system's congestion and coming up with effective solutions to simplify and execute their operations in an efficient manner.

Furthermore, AI systems can predict the exact quantity of the expected outcome across distinct stages of the schedule, which enables optional alternatives if any interruptions occur when executing the scheduled task.

The software used by the supply chain amplifies the decision-making by using cognitive predictions and recommendations on optimal actions, which eventually increases the performance of the supply chain. It also helps manufacturers with consequences across various scenarios, including time, cost, and revenue.

It is extremely critical for the manufacturers to get complete visibility of the supply chain, with minimal efforts, looking at the complex supply chain network that exists today.

AI systems offer a single virtual layer of data that reveals a glimpse of the entire supply chain's performance, helps to eliminate the congestion, and picks opportunities for improvement with the real-time data, which is monitored by these AI systems constantly.

AI: Performance Delivered Artificial Intelligence (AI) is accelerating the working principles of the supply chain by eliminating the extra efforts which are eventually saving time, and with the fundamentals of working effortlessly, AI is driving the supply chain industries to a new era of promising automation systems with the newly emerging techniques ready for the future.

On-time Executions AI systems can help in reducing the dependency of manual efforts, which makes the entire process faster, safer, and

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- Abhishek Joshi.

Chrissa McFarlane Founder and CEO

Patientory has received many accolades, including • ‘The 10 Most Innovative Digital Healthcare Solution Providers 2018’ by Insightscare • The 2018 ‘Globe Award Winner’ in International Trade by the U.S. State of Georgia • ‘Technology Pioneers 2021’ cohort by World Economic Forum • ‘Top 100 Start-up of the Year’ • Recently, Patientory was nominated for ‘Best Digital Health Solution 2021’ for the 2021 Prix Galien USA Award by Galien Foundation.

• Patientory is on the top 10 list of successful blockchain companies that are thriving today.

Your Health at Your Fingertips Consolidating Medical Data for Better Administration

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10 Most Promising Healthcare Supply Chain Management Solution Companies for 2021

T

he Healthcare industry, in general, has advanced exponentially in the past few decades. The credit of this advancement mostly goes to the inclusion of the latest technological innovations in the industry.

In the past, medical records from visiting different healthcare professionals used to get stored differently, which made it difficult to get an overview of the complete health of an individual. But with the introduction of blockchain technology in the healthcare space, it has now become possible to store all the healthrelated information of an individual in one centralized place.

Patientory, Inc. is one such company that is providing these vital services to both patients and enterprises to better manage their health. The company is spearheaded by Chrissa McFarlane, its Founder, and CEO. In the following interview, Chrissa elaborates on how the company is transforming the healthcare space with cutting-edge technology.

Below are the highlights from the interview: Please brief our audience about Patientory, Inc., its USPs, and the key aspects of its stronghold within the healthcare supply chain niche.

We are the only company that provides on-chain healthcare population analytics on top of a specific healthcare blockchain, and we have done so with a fraction of the funding that our competitors have received. Being one of the first movers using Blockchain technology in the Health IT market, we provide a solution for both patients and providers.

Tell us more about the solutions that you offer, giving Patientory, Inc. a distinctive edge to stand out from the competition.

We are all aware that patients and providers still face challenges managing health data on a daily basis, as healthcare is generalized, not personalized, and data aggregation is limited. Both providers and patients lack the comprehensive data to make the most efficient decisions.

Due to a lack of interoperability and access across current management systems, providers, employers, and pharmaceutical companies are unable to see the whole picture; they are unable to create efficient care plans for patients without access to all patient data. So, we came up with a solution that fills these gaps and gives patients an opportunity to own their health data, where Patientory democratizes individual ownership of the world’s

health data and incentives to improve health outcomes.

Patientory Inc. provides patients with access and insights, comprehensive healthcare data, risk management analytics, and AI-driven clinical trial recruitment management systems through its two decentralized applications, the Patientory mobile app and enterprise software tool Neith.

This is achieved by integrating a blockchain-enabled network to gather and analyze siloed healthcare data, which includes daily lifestyle factors, and in turn, reduce the cost of care.

Our increased interoperability improves care coordination while ensuring data security, minimizing health breaches and penalties, and decreasing IT expenditures.

As a seasoned business leader, what is your opinion about the effects of the pandemic on the healthcare supply chain sector, and what were the challenges that Patientory, Inc. came across?

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every nation, business, and supply chain all over the world. The pandemic highlighted the inadequacies and weaknesses in the health care supply chains. It brought to light previously unseen vulnerabilities and

Patientory, Inc. is a population health data management and analytics company that empowers patients to manage their healthcare data while also providing enterprises with holistic data points to help them develop more comprehensive care plans. We are one of the three HIPAA compliant platforms that combines blockchain, big data, and machine learning to help enterprises better understand consumer health data.

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many organizations have suffered staff shortages and losses due to the COVID-19 crisis.

One of the most difficult aspects of managing this public health crisis has been the manufacturing and distribution of medical devices, surgical supplies, and medicines to those on the clinical frontlines.

However, for our company, we didn’t really face any challenge, and I would say the pandemic really brought to light the nest, the means for supply chain in healthcare and tracking, which brought our solutions to the forefront.

Some organizations are starting to use AI technologies across the end-to-end supply chain to help make predictive and prescriptive decisions. So, I believe having advanced technologies like AI and ML will definitely add value and help to normalize the current situation facilitating both consumers and providers.

What would be your advice to the entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into the healthcare supply chain solutions space?

Being one of the rst movers using have always Blockchain technology in Ibelieved in a future when the Health IT market, we healthcare is no provide a solution for longer defined by the large expenses both patients and that currently plague the economic systems providers.

With continuous development in technologies such as AI and ML, what is your prediction about the future of the supply chain solutions niche?

I see the promising future of the supply chain solutions niche with continuous development in technologies such as AI and ML. There is no doubt that AI and ML are becoming essential to innovative supply chain transformation as AI and ML can deliver unprecedented value to supply chain and logistics operations.

We all know that the COVID-19 pandemic put a tremendous amount of pressure and stress on many supply chain industries. Many organizations are increasingly pressed to work smarter to fulfill customer’s needs and expectations.

and the general people.

The most important thing we need to do is continue to raise awareness, be a voice for the others coming behind us, and learn to step outside of your comfort zones in order to create an industry that looks and performs quite differently in the future.

Especially for new entrepreneurs, it is always crucial to network and connect with others to explore your expertise and opportunities. I would say networking is the most important part to explore and attract different opportunities.

How do you envision scaling your company’s operations and offerings in 2021?

In 2021, we envision scaling our company’s operations and offering through partnerships and campaigns.

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ABOUT THE LEADER Chrissa McFarlane is the Founder and CEO of Patientory, Inc., based in Atlanta, and a Forbes contributor on healthcare and blockchain topics. She was named as one of the top women ‘leaving their mark on the MedTech field in health IT’, by Becker’s Hospital Review. Chrissa McFarlane founded Patientory after working more than a decade in the healthcare technology industry and realizing there was a need for more personalized, secure, and consumer-driven health information management solutions.

Chrissa has worked in a variety of sectors in the healthcare technology industry, from microbiological research to pharmaceutical operations consulting, as well as working with health insurance providers and hospitals. She has devoted her career to healthcare and blockchain, and she believes that blockchain has the potential to improve healthcare by integrating socioeconomic determinants of health into care.

Chrissa is a Digital Health Influencer for HIMSS and an influencer/ambassador for the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. She is passionate about fostering digital innovation in the healthcare industry.

Chrissa is also a published author and her debut book ‘Future Women: Minority Female Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industrial Revolution in the Era of Blockchain and Cryptocurrency’ was published in 2019. She is a pioneer with influence in the areas of both blockchain and healthcare.

he liver is one of the hardest working organs in the human body, converting nutrients and generating amino acids to help fight infections. Maintaining liver health becomes increasingly important as we age.

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examination to help identify and monitor liver disease earlier.

To help protect this vital organ, older Americans should avoid alcohol, take acetaminophen in moderation, consult with a physician before taking supplements, eat a balanced diet and get tested for viral hepatitis, especially if they were born between 1945 and 1965.

Almost one-third of Americans have asymptomatic liver disease, also known as fatty liver disease (FLD), about 85 million Americans have nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and 20% have its more severe form nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

Hepatitis C, an infection caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV), is contracted from infected blood and can put certain people at higher risk of infection. Hepatitis C is the most serious type of infection because it can be chronic and cause severe liver damage. Over one-third of HCV-infected people progress to advanced fibrosis and cirrhosis, and of those with cirrhosis, about 3 – 5% each year develop decompensated cirrhosis and/or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

One study on how NAFLD affects patients treated and cured for HCV found that NAFLD identified in patients prior to treatment remained after they’d been cured of HCV infection. Among those with NAFLD before treatment, 6.25% still had substantial liver scarring after being cured of HCV infection.

Unfortunately, a large number of chronically HCV-infected persons in the U.S. are older and have lived with HCV infection for decades. Those with long-duration chronic HCV are at risk for the most advanced forms of liver disease.

HCV and Liver Disease Connection

The good news is that NAFLD can be reversible if caught in the early stages. Weight management is the most effective way to control or reverse NAFLD. A loss of 3-5% in weight can improve liver health. Together, exercise and diet therapy can lower fat accumulation in the liver and improve hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and insulin resistance.

The Importance of VCTE Tools

In response, more physicians have adopted vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE) technology, a painless, non-invasive and simple

For treating HCV and liver disease, physicians should consider taking a holistic approach to patient engagement

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and support behavioral changes that will lead to better outcomes and higher quality of life.

VCTE technology, such as FibroScan, a non-invasive point of care examination, provides results that can empower physicians with data and information they can use in real time to refer patients to a specialist or suggest changes to their overall care plans, if needed. What’s more, VCTE tools are covered by Medicare, Medicaid, and many insurance plans.

healthcare professional. Results are numeric measurements, not images, which allows for simplified interpretation and consistency.

This enables physicians to monitor changes in the livers of patients with HCV over time for the most effective care and outcomes. Once identified, FLD patients can receive proactive intervention and alter their lifestyle to slow disease progression.

The best non-invasive liver exams are highly mobile, can be easily operated by a medical assistant and interpreted by the

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he human body might appear simple on the outside, but it is a complex structure with its own limitations. Although(reviewed), it is designed in such a way that it can easily adjust to a slightly higher or lower temperature internally or externally. However, if exposed to extremely harsh conditions for a long time can lead to a fatal illness, which can even result in death.

The cold storage industry is a growing one. According to CBRE, after 2000, the cold storage industry grew by 43%.

Today, the industry is valued at $107.18 billion and is expected to grow by 13% by 2028. It is an evolving industry; the owners are responsible for the safety of the employers as the employees are working in extremely hard unnatural conditions.

Safety measures are to be followed at cold storage facilities because they help ensure the safety of everyone working in

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the facility. Since the working conditions are extremely harsh, the risks are larger, which can affect the lives of many people. There are certain precautions that every cold storage owner, along with the employee working there, must know.

Here are the five health and safety precautions that every cold storage owner must know and follow: Temperature Check and Control Cold storage facilities do not just store one kind of thing unless it is specially designed for storing one specific type of item. Having said that, few things are stored at a lower temperature, which can prove fatal when there is a change in temperature. That is why it is essential to check the temperature of the facility frequently.

Temperature control plays a very crucial role in the safety of the employees. Exposing the employees to extremely cold temperatures can result in fatal conditions. Working in cold conditions can lead to frostbite, frostnip, hypothermia, immersion injury, etc. All these cold room illnesses can be fatal or can cause permanent damage to the body, skin, and even blood vessels. That is why it is important to control the temperature at cold storage facilities.

Protective Clothing When working in a cold storage environment, it is essential to wear protective clothing and equipment all the time. It is also the responsibility of the owner to provide all the necessary clothing and equipment for working under such harsh conditions. Protective gears for the body, head, hands, eyes, and face are required. Wear spacious or separate eyes and face protection as they often cause fogging due to breathing.

Make sure that there are layers before you wear the protective suit to prevent extra heat loss from the body. The layers below the protective gear should be able to keep the body warm. Also, eat high calory food and drink more water as it maintains energy levels in cold conditions and minimizes the risk of fatal diseases like hypothermia.

additional protective gear on, making it difficult for the employee to move and work. Efficient training in sustaining and maintaining productivity in such cold conditions is required for safety.

Apart from that, the packages which are stored at the storage facility might be dangerous. To handle such things under cold conditions often require training with proper measures. Healthy work practices should also be a part of training, as a 10-minute break at room temperature after every 50-minutes of work. Continuously working in cold conditions can adversely affect the health of workers.

Infrastructural Safety Under a cold storage facility where the temperature is controlled manually, it is essential to maintain the facility.

Cleaning and keeping the facility dry can prevent major hazards like slipping. Make sure the facility is well maintained, and everything is easily accessible to avoid spillage, etc.

Ice-build-up can cause a lot of safety hazards at the facilities including, ice-build-up on storage racks, ceiling, and even on floors. Also, electrical accidents can be problematic and hard to stop in cold conditions if not maintained properly. Check and clean the electric appliances and wires to avoid any electrical hazards like short circuits.

Well-lit Facility Cold facilities are often monochromic and are isolated. This causes problems for the workers to work efficiently and can lead to accidents. That is why make sure that the cold storage facility is well lit. Along with that, there should also be sufficient spacing between the racks to avoid accidents, collisions, and other damages to the property and the employees.

Working in cold storage facilities can affect the workers in many ways. Often the health conditions of the employees are at risk. Make sure you take the necessary measures to ensure the safety of employees. If safety at the workplace is maintained, it also indirectly ensures the longevity of the business.

Efficient and Required Training Working in cold storage might seem easy, but it is a challenging task as there is a cold environment and the

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-Ashlesh Khadse

Making Healthcare Efciently Viable

Dr. Sameer Ahmed Khan Founder and CEO

T Our recognition stems from the condence our partners have shown in us and our ability to expand so quickly within a short timeframe.

he traditional approach towards purchase planning was limited by demand and supply aggregation to find the cheapest alternative in the healthcare sector. This approach lacked focus on critical aspects of quality care management, transparent consumption tracking, and supply chain process chokes. Due to this, hospitals faced quality issues, siloed consumption leading to wastage, dark purchasing, and delays in supplies due to several broken linkages.

StratMed is India’s first transparent group purchasing organization and has introduced an approach that looks at every aspect of the supply chain optimization curve – Clinical Requirement Mapping, Processes, Industry Cost and Consumption Benchmarks, and building a wider supply Eco-system.

StartMed’s Founder and CEO, Dr. Sameer Khan is an expert in the health care industry. In the following

About the leader Being a qualied doctor himself, the Founder and CEO, Dr. Sameer Ahmed Khan has deep clinical expertise, which when combined with his long-standing growth-leadership experience gives StratMed a unique value advantage of providing both clinical and business advisory support to hospital partners.

Dr. Sameer has played an integral role in setting up four agship hospitals of fortis healthcare in India and steering revenue realization goals for leading healthcare brands. He has 20+ years of growth leadership experience. He held a leadership role in driving revenue, strategy, growth, and sourcing across large healthcare providers.

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10 Most Promising Healthcare Supply Chain Management Solution Companies for 2021

interview, he shed some light on the operations and services provided by the firm. He believes that this endeavor is a step towards making healthcare more productive and value efficient. Following are the key aspects of the interview.

Please brief our audience about StratMed, its USPs, and the key aspects of its stronghold within the healthcare supply chain niche.

StratMed partners with leading pharmaceutical companies and medical equipment manufacturers to provide large quaternary care hospitals, single specialty hospitals, corporate chains, community hospitals, nursing homes, and clinics with future-ready, end-to-end solutions for optimized hospital purchase planning and supply chain management.

While the clinical experts at StratMed work closely with the clinical leadership team within a hospital to evaluate and improve formulary design practices, process solutionists work towards de-bottlenecking. Supply partners engage at a deeper level to provide better value solutions and StratMed’s proprietary data-driven technology platform – Integer™ creates the intelligence layer for sharper decisionmaking and planning.

As a seasoned business leader, what is your opinion about the effects of the pandemic on the healthcare supply chain sector, and what were the challenges that StratMed came across?

The pandemic taught us how not to ‘depend’ on a singlesupply source. Added to this is the impetus on localization.

When the supply lines broke down during the pandemic, we leveraged our tech platform Integer™ to map the alternate source pools from our wide network of suppliers. This

combined with predictive consumption analytics, we were able to support hospitals despite the challenges.

With continuous development in technologies such as AI and ML, what is your prediction about the future of the supply chain solutions niche?

AI and ML provide the much-needed intelligence layer, but they can be harnessed only if the underlying data is accurate and data attributes are comprehensively captured. Hence, our focus is on creating the right data landscape and leverage AI and ML applications for demand planning and forecasting, formulary design benchmarks based on specialty and treatment procedures, inventory level tracking, optimization, etc.

What would be your advice to the entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into the healthcare supply chain solutions space?

Look beyond ‘Bulk Purchasing’ and focus on cost optimization methods that enhance clinical outcomes and do not disrupt them.

How do you envision scaling StratMed’s operations and offerings in 2021?

We have an aggressive growth plan for the coming years.

While we will keep scaling our presence in India, we will also strengthen our presence in UAE. Our goal is to add 300 hospitals, 20,000 Beds, across India by 2023. We also intend to enter the MENA region and Southeast Asia in the coming fiscal.

On the offerings side, we plan to introduce different models of engagement – PaaS, Consulting, and Managed Services within the context of hospital supply chain optimization.

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Synthium Health T

he supply chain is an integral part of most establishments. It becomes an even more crucial process to consider when it comes to the healthcare space. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the role of supply chain management became more evident when supply shortages risked the whole community’s health.

All the components of the healthcare system fastened their seat belts to deliver in the grueling pandemic situation. The supply chain space also rose to the occasion to help the community in a time of crisis like this.

One of the prominent names in the arena, Synthium Health, left no stones unturned to provide their cloudbased, digital information, and eCommerce platform engineered exclusively for the healthcare industry.

Spearheaded by Vijay Reddy, the CEO of the company, Synthium Health is disrupting the healthcare supply chain sector through its unified platform which connects providers and suppliers directly to the end customer, eliminating the middleman.

In the following interview, Mr. Reddy expands more on the services offered by the company and its functioning.

Please brief our audience about Synthium Health, its USPs, and the key aspects of its stronghold within the healthcare supply chain niche.

Synthium is an intelligent, collaborative healthcare technology platform that aims to link supply chain participants in health industry such as manufacturers,

GPOs, distributors, and providers and enables them to interact, transact and grow together.

Synthium was published on CCBeast, Disruptor Daily, TechBullion, and Medical Design & Outsourcing magazine.

Tell us more about the solutions that you offer, giving Synthium Health a distinctive edge to stand out from the competition.

Suppliers/Manufacturers (https://www.synthiumhealth.com/suppliers/): Manage 360 degrees view of sales Setup catalog and start selling Reduce costs with lower credit card processing fees as well as accept eCheck/ACH payments Ÿ Automate recurring payments Ÿ Manage sales team Ÿ Analytics & Reports Ÿ Ÿ

Upcoming features: Generous credit options to support cash flow Ability to target customers across different sectors such as B2B and B2C. Ÿ Target customers on other platforms such as Amazon, Walmart, and eBay Ÿ Lower shipping costs on LTL (Less Than Truckloads) and TL (Truck Loads) shipments Ÿ Multiple storage locations Ÿ Ÿ

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Vijay Reddy CEO

Clinical knowledge base (unique project for AIdriven clinical diagnosis/decision making) PayD – A unique patented idea to pay the medical practices Ÿ Medical billing and transcription services for hospitals and medical practices Ÿ Medical Coding Platform Ÿ Blockchain and more.

Vijay Reddy is an Entrepreneur, Blockchain, and AI enthusiast with a passionate drive for software development and wanting to bring disruptive technologies and innovation in the healthcare industry. He is currently working on a medical devices SPAC and hoping to bring growth opportunities for the innovative medical device companies alongside the development of an eCommerce platform that serves to reduce dependency on middle layers in the current healthcare supply chain.

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After completing his MS in Computer Science, he entered the healthcare space with OSI Systems (now MedAssets, Inc.) in 1991 and progressed to be the Chief Information Officer for the company, where he was instrumental in helping the company become one of the largest revenue cycle management companies. Over 50% of the hospitals in the US utilized the software and services.

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He was invited as a guest speaker in healthcare events such as: HMMC (Healthcare Manufacturers Management Council) Ÿ BlockTrain Ÿ HealthTech O2O By running and moderating user groups such as Healthcare Blockchain & AI with over 2,700 members and Medical Coding/Claims Analysis with about 1,600 members on LinkedIn, he is up to date with the industry changes.

After leaving the company, he started his entrepreneurial journey in 2001; he launched several companies along the way, including:

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Healthcare providers (https://www.synthiumhealth.com/providers/): Synthium saves healthcare providers time, money, and effort to procure products at the best active price. Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ

Improve medical supplies procurement process Analytics & Reports RFQs Surgery scheduling/management

Healthcare professionals such as physicians, nurses, and others (https://www.synthiumhealth.com/clinicians/): A networking platform with the following benefits: Network with other professionals and strengthen professional goals and business connections Ÿ Clinical advice from peers Ÿ Keep up with FDA product recalls, healthcare news, and more Ÿ Career and business opportunities Ÿ

As a seasoned business leader, what is your opinion about the effects of the pandemic on the healthcare supply chain sector, and what were the challenges that your company came across?

Pandemic affected everyone, including the healthcare supply chain. The healthcare supply chain was put under tremendous pressure due to supply shortages and a surge in demand for certain supplies. As far as Synthium is concerned, we started offering COVID-related products to our customers and tried to fill the gaps in procurement. We published educational materials to educate medical practices.

With continuous development in technologies such as AI and ML, what is your prediction about the future of the supply chain solutions niche?

AI and ML impacted most industries. The healthcare supply chain would gain tremendous benefits by adopting/embracing the technology. We developed easy to use Synthium Analytics, so our customers do not need a data scientist, powerful computers, or setup cost: An advanced 9-step system of predictive modeling to predict the outcomes. Ÿ Time series algorithm along with 12 other different types of algorithms that run simultaneously to provide highly accurate analysis. Ÿ Instant recognition of attributes like CPT codes, ICD codes, HCPCS code, etc. Ÿ Smart grouping of DRG, UNSPSC code. Ÿ

What would be your advice to the entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into the healthcare supply chain solutions space?

The healthcare supply chain industry is complex and huge.

There are several opportunities where one can make a difference/innovate in optimizing expenses and innovative product lines. An additional benefit is that this is a recession-resistant industry. With an aging global population, it is definitely a growing industry with opportunities for all.

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