Medicine Authenticity Verification System

The project began in response to the need to improve the medication authenticity verification process, which involved handling a large number of warning messages. The goal was to make the process more efficient and provide quicker feedback to end-users.

Our client is REKS (Estonian Medication Authenticity Verification Foundation). The medication authenticity verification system is pan-European and implemented in 32 countries. In Estonia, REKS is the managing organization. In 2020, when the development project started, the volume of checked medications in Estonia averaged around 700,000 medications per week, which is approximately 2.5 million scans per month. If the system didn't find data corresponding to the security element on the medication package, it issued a warning to the user, and these warnings had to be processed by REKS. At that time, the ratio of warnings to scans ranged from 0.05% to 0.1%, which meant processing around 2,000 warnings per month.

To efficiently handle this volume of warnings, there were two options: either expand the team or develop a software solution to automate the process as much as possible. REKS chose the latter option.

The advantage of automation is that for warning messages that don't require manual intervention, an immediate response can be sent to the end user (pharmacy or wholesaler) seven days a week, regardless of the time of day.

We developed the new system as a fully tailored solution: our specialists were responsible for both business and detailed analysis, usability testing, design, and development. Additionally, we provide hosting services for the application to the client. The automation-related algorithms for the system were developed in collaboration between REKS and Trinidad Wiseman. We utilized tools and technologies such as Jira, Confluence, Swagger, Node.js, Angular 2+, Docker, Figma, and NestJS as part of our methodology and programming stack.

As a result of the project, the processing software REK-IS, or the error handling system for the Estonian medication authenticity verification information system, was completed. The software allows parties integrated with it or those submitting notifications through a web form to receive immediate feedback when a medication can be dispensed or when a specific case is being manually processed. 

Additionally, the new software reduces the workload for parties connected to the information system (such as pharmacies and wholesalers) in certain situations. For example, when a medication is put on hold pending the determination of the reason for a warning. Such cases must also be documented, which would otherwise need to be done manually.

The project's outcome is an information system utilized by REKS employees and pharmacies integrated with the information system.

The entire work process was based on the best practices of the Scrum methodology and agile methods. Development was completed ahead of the agreed-upon deadline (approximately 3 weeks earlier).

This project is a great example of how a motivated team can develop more complex systems in a short time. Both parties consider fast and flexible two-way communication as a key component of the successfully smooth project - decisions on changes were often made very quickly after reasoned discussions. We regularly held review meetings during the project, where we handed over the work part, which the client then tested and immediately gave us feedback.

We continued with the REK-IS 2.0 project, focusing on automating communication and improving user experience, which we launched in the autumn of 2023. The goal of REK-IS 2.0 was to automate, simplify, and document the communication between REKS and pharmacies/wholesalers. As a new solution, the system now sends out a questionnaire in certain cases to the person reporting an error. Based on certain responses, REK-IS then automatically performs predetermined actions, such as moving the procedure to the correct status or ending the procedure. Questionnaires can still also be sent out manually by REKS.

Our cooperation with different projects continues.