[ANN][ICO] MediConnect | Revolutionise the use of medication | Stratis verified

[MediConnect]

Hello Everyone,

As you guys can see! we are upping our visibility here!

The United Kingdom has a prescription drug problem, a potential crisis that threatens the health and safety of everyone in the county.
The problem isn’t that1-in-11patients are prescribed addictive medication.
Nor that fentanyl related deathshave spiked more than 500% over the past several years.
It isn’t even the fact that nearly 1-in-3 overdose deaths in Europe occur in the UK, earning it the title of “drug overdose capital of Europe.”
These are all are serious issues, but they are not part of the overall problem.
The real problem, one that deserves greater attention, is the ease in which these drugs can be obtained.
The prevalence of online pharmacies, in conjunction with an alarming rise in prescriptions of addictive medications, means that almost anyone can order large qualities of powerful opioid, antidepressants or other potentially harmful drugs.
But how is that possible when prescriptions for such medications limit the amount of drug that can be dispensed?
It turns out that for those addicted to prescription drugs, online pharmacies can provide multiple workarounds.
First, online pharmacies can take advantage of a regulatory loophole that allows them to register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) if they employ certain healthcare professionals other than pharmacists.
The CQC regulates health care services, not pharmacies, meaning that the companies can operate without following regulations set by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), as brick and mortar pharmacies must. Making matters worse is the fact that some online pharmacies allow customers to purchase opioids without prescriptions, if they receive an online assessment.
However, these assessments will often be performed by doctors employed by companies outside England, thus placing the online pharmacies outside the jurisdiction of the CQC, which can only inspect websites that use doctors employed by companies in England.
Regulatory authorities and pharmacy professionals have been quick to condemn such websites.
In a BBC Panorama investigation of online pharmacies, Prof Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said she was “horrified” to by the ease in which customers could, “click on the drug first, and [then go] through the consultation,” thus circumventing the usual process.
According to Yasir Abbasi, clinical director for addiction services at Mersey Care NHS foundation trust, “if you buy something online you should have to go through one central system, regardless of which online pharmacy you visit online, so what you buy can be monitored.”

But unfortunately, regulatory loopholes aren’t the only incentive for opioid addicts to use online pharmacies.
Those seeking opioids and other prescription medications can take advantage of the relaxed checks and safeguards on such websites.
A worrying number of online pharmacies have no cross-referencing systems in place to identify when someone makes multiple orders to the same address.
As a result, almost anyone can order hundreds of pills of powerful and dangerous medication without anyone noticing.
So what be done to combat such reckless dispensing methods?
According to some, the answer is not more regulation and oversight, but informational interconnectedness.
To solve the opioid crisis, they say, the United Kingdom must bridge the medical data silos that exist within every healthcare entity.
Currently, most healthcare providers in the United Kingdom, such as doctors, hospitals and pharmacies, use isolated data management systems to collect and store their data. And while these isolated systems might be sufficient for the individual healthcare entities, they fail to harness the usefulness of aggregate data.
This is where MediConnect enters the picture. The company is leveraging blockchain technology to create a comprehensive gateway in which data regarding drug production, supply chains, patient prescriptions and drug dispensing is collected and shared.
According to MediConnect, by creating a distributed database, prescribing and dispensing data can be cross-referenced to identify trends of over-prescribing and prevent instances of abuse.
If true, then the United Kingdom’s prescription drug problem may already be solved.

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[MediConnect]

British Business Federation Authority to accelerate the development of MediConnect as the gold standard solution in patient care for UK pharmacies



(Nottingham, United Kingdom — 28 March 2019): MediConnect (the “Company”), the blockchain solution for tracing and sharing data across the medication supply chain, is pleased to announce that Patrick Curry OBE, CEO of the British Business Federation Authority (“BBFA”), has joined the Company as an adviser to the Board. Patrick brings extensive experience of deploying technological solutions to build secure collaboration between governments, industry bodies and private companies.

Awarded an OBE by HM The Queen for services to international collaboration, Patrick has over twenty years’ experience of developing policies and standards. He is CEO of BBFA, a governance body seeking to build collaborative, digital trust mechanisms across industries, and co-authored the UK Government’s Lord Holmes Report in 2018: “Distributed Ledger Technologies for Public Good: Leadership, Collaboration and Innovation”. At BBFA, Patrick is tasked with overseeing working groups to implement the findings of this report, namely working collaboratively to implement new secure, private technologies such as blockchains. This includes the Prescription Drug Addiction Working Group, which has signed up MediConnect as a member and invited contributions from all the major regulators.

MediConnect is a blockchain solution designed to track medication all the way through the supply chain from the point at which it is manufactured to its prescription by medical professionals and purchase by patients. At a time when 200,000 Brits are said to be chronic users of prescription painkillers (Evening Standard: 2018), MediConnect provides a blockchain solution to share information securely between companies, pharmacies, hospitals and health organisations. This will perform the following functions:

· Prevent the misuse and overprescribing of prescription drugs

· Provide information to assist health practitioners in preventing and tackling drug addiction

· Establish drug provenance and traceability through all parts of the supply chain

· Streamline the drug recall process, reducing health risk and cost

MediConnect has agreed a five-year contract with the Addiction Safeguarding Committee Organisation (“ASC”), under which the organisation will exclusively use MediConnect’s blockchain solution and all ASC members will be integrated into the platform. Two online pharmacies, UK Meds and Tower Health & Pharmacy, have already signed up to integrate MediConnect’s solution upon conclusion of the Company’s Initial Coin Offering (“ICO”). A comprehensive pilot scheme is also planned with 8–10 local private and NHS pharmacies set to trial the solution, which will enable 360,000 patients to store their records securely on the MediConnect blockchain, processing 50,000 transactions every month.

The MediConnect blockchain is being built by Stratis Group Ltd as a bespoke solution based on the Stratis blockchain. MediConnect has launched its own MEDI Token to handle transactions and transfer value on its platform. The ICO of the MEDI Token is currently live and is expected to conclude in H1 2019.

Dexter Blackstock, CEO of MediConnect, commented: “We are delighted to receive the support of such an influential and well-connected adviser as Patrick. As head of the BBFA, Patrick specialises in seeing the value of technologies that can work between companies, industry bodies and governments. His support of MediConnect is therefore a highly significant endorsement of our solution and will help us onboard even more pharmacies and prescribers. By centrally tracing the medical supply chain and preventing the oversubscription of prescription drugs, MediConnect will protect the health of patients and save the NHS millions of pounds.”

Patrick Curry OBE, CEO of the British Business Federation Authority, added: “MediConnect is an excellent example of a solution designed to tackle a problem by bringing industry, government and regulatory bodies together. The overuse of prescription medication is a growing and worrying trend in society and the need for controlled and trusted information sharing across the medical sector is key to addressing this. Because MediConnect is focused on drug delivery to patients and not just on patient records, I see ground-breaking opportunities for significant wider benefits in mental health, unemployment, care for the elderly, other addictions including food, alcohol and gambling, as well as reductions in costs and risks across the health and pharmaceutical industries. I look forward to working with the MediConnect consortia to develop its blockchain-based solution to this very important, national, real-world problem.”

Enquiries

Dexter Blackstock, Chief Executive Officer
info@mediconnect.io

Luther Pendragon
Harry Chathli, Alexis Gore, Joe Quinlan
+44 (0)20 7618 9100

About MediConnect
MediConnect is a blockchain solution intended to revolutionise the way medication is managed and traced in the UK. The MediConnect blockchain acts as a safety net for patients, prescribers, pharmacies and drug manufacturers by preventing patients ordering prescriptions with multiple online pharmacies; identifying counterfeit drugs and preventing their distribution into the Pharma chain; and alerting patients instantly when a drug or medicine is recalled.
MediConnect will commence working with two online pharmacies in the UK, UK Meds and Tower Health, which have a combined user-base of over 300,000 customers, meaning 50,000 transactions a month will immediately be transacted on the MediConnect blockchain.

The MediConnect solution is being designed to comprise of two blockchains: Firstly, a private, permissioned blockchain to store confidential customer prescription data and provenance data for medicines. This type of blockchain is often referred to as Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT). Secondly, a public blockchain that will handle the MEDI transactions relating to the purchase of medication, loyalty schemes and will fund Smart Contracts embedded within the MEDI platform. Both blockchains will be implemented utilizing the Stratis Technology Stack.

For more information, please visit the following links:
Website –https://mediconnect.io/
Whitepaper — https://mediconnect.io/wp-content/uploads/2019/Online-MediConnect-Whitepaper.pdf
Telegram — https://t.me/mediconnect
Medium — https://medium.com/@Mediconnectuk
Reddit — https://www.reddit.com/r/mediconnect
Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/mediconnectuk/
Twitter — https://twitter.com/Mediconnectuk
Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/mediconnectuk
YouTube — https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSVZxbMB19XiJyvre1qbolw
Discord — https://discordapp.com/invite/8jhwMTJ

[MediConnect]

Tower Health will be the first online pharmacy to integrate MediConnect’s blockchain solution.



Online pharmacy Tower Health and MediConnect are developing a proof-of-concept (“POC”) blockchain solution to trace medication prescribed to Tower Health’s active userbase of 100,000 people.

MediConnect, the blockchain solution for tracing and sharing data across the medication supply chain, is pleased to announce that the online pharmacy Tower Health has signed up to develop a POC to integrate MediConnect’s solution to trace products through its supply chain and prevent the misuse of prescription drugs.

Tower Health
Established in 1999, Tower Health is a fast-growing, independent health provider offering both alternative solutions as well as NHS and private prescriptions online and by direct mail. Tower Health provides 10,000 orders a month to its customers and has an active userbase of 100,000 people, making it an excellent company for MediConnect to pilot its blockchain solution.

The collaboration
The MediConnect platform is expected to be seamlessly integrated into Tower Health’s current processes as Tower Health road-tests the solution during the pilot period starting in June. Initially, only a carefully screened portfolio of prescription drugs will be transacted, with the view to include all drugs available in the British National Formulary (BNF) once the POC has been completed.

Tower Health has been involved with MediConnect since its inception. Along with online pharmacy UK Meds, Tower Health approached The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in 2017 with a proposal to create a single shared source to identify potential over-prescription of medicine. Dissatisfied with the slow process, Tower Health and UK Meds decided to explore their own solution to the problem resulting in the formation of MediConnect.

Steps forward
MediConnect’s collaboration with Tower Health is another step forward as it develops and rolls out its blockchain solution. The Company recently announced that Patrick Curry OBE, CEO of the British Business Federation Authority (BBFA), joined as an adviser to the Board, bringing with him extensive experience of deploying technological solutions to build secure collaboration between governments, industry bodies and private companies.

Additionally, MediConnect has launched its own MEDI Token to handle transactions and transfer value on its platform. Once the MEDI Token is available to transact with Tower Health, users will have the option to pay with the MEDI Token at discounted rates. The Initial Coin Offering (ICO) of the MEDI Token is currently live and is expected to conclude at the end of Q3 2019.

Dexter Blackstock, CEO of MediConnect, commented: “We are extremely pleased that Tower Health has agreed to develop a proof-of-concept for our blockchain solution. Tower Health is a growing online pharmacy with a great userbase to springboard our platform and make a real-world improvement to the safety of their patients. It also shows that there is a great willingness on the part of pharmacies to establish drug provenance and traceability throughout the medication supply chain. We hope that this will be the beginning of many more collaborations.”

Jason Timms, Owner of Tower Health and Adviser to MediConnect, added: “Tower Health believes it is important to reduce the availability and frequency of obtaining prescriptions from online and offline pharmacies and prescribers which is why we have partnered with MediConnect. One of our priorities is duty of care for our patients and we believe that by tracking medicines and drugs, we can prevent the misuse and overprescribing of prescription drugs. It is clear to us that MediConnect’s solution needs to be adopted by all pharmacies and we are proud to be one of the first to do so.”

Interested in MediConnect?
This blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data, it also provides a gold standard in patient safety and duty of care. If you’re interested in this project, please connect with the team on social media:

Telegram : https://t.me/joinchat/G28yZkwgea1XT-Ns66exJg
Twitter : https://twitter.com/Mediconnectuk
Discord : https://discord.gg/8jhwMTJ
Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/company/mediconnectuk-blockchain/
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/mediconnectuk/
Instagram : https://instagram.com/mediconnectuk
Reddit : https://www.reddit.com/r/mediconnect

[MediConnect]

MediConnect is the only blockchain solution intended to revolutionise the way medication is traced and managed in the UK. MediConnect is a safety net for patients, prescribers, pharmacies and drug manufacturers. Our vision is to become the gold standard blockchain solution approved by the Pharmacy and Medicine regulators for the prevention of obtaining multiple prescriptions from online and offline pharmacies.

In addition, through the MediConnect blockchain solution, the identification of counterfeit and recalled drugs and their distribution can be prevented, protecting patients and the industry whilst ensuring potentially huge cost savings for the pharma world.



Why a Blockchain?
Digitisation has transformed many business processes over the past 30 years, and the NHS is no different in requiring technology to do its part in streamlining and delivering health services to everyone in the UK. The MediConnect project is an example of an industry-led transformation to one aspect of health services in the UK.

The pharmaceutical industry is an area where we believe blockchain technology has a unique role to play in improving patient care. At the same time, blockchain provides the audit trail, privacy, and security the sector demands. Instead of being a “big bang” national programme, funded by the Government like the NPfIT, MediConnect will be launched in one area where it can be monitored by a government-led working group so that, when proven, it can be rolled out to other regions.

We can see how a blockchain-based solution can help solve the current issues in the pharmaceutical industry. In parallel, a blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data. Regulatory bodies are extremely important in the pharmaceutical industry, and a blockchain-based solution can give these authorities an overarching view of the daily operations. This would provide a level of transparency that is not possible with conventional solutions.



Stratis
Stratis Group Ltd were approached for advice as to how blockchain technology could assist with the proposed solution. Chris Trew, founder and CEO of Stratis Group Ltd was keen to assist with designing such a solution to prevent drug dependency and the addiction of prescription drugs.

Consultancy
Blockchain technology gives enterprises a chance to:

• Re-evaluate their position within their industry sector.
• Redefine their relationship with organisations such as competitors and regulatory bodies.

Stratis has a team of in-house blockchain developers and consultants who understand the importance of these key points. Above all, the team knows that when enterprises adopt the correct blockchain-based approach, there is an opportunity to streamline business processes across multiple entities.

Across every advance in blockchain from full nodes, smart contracts, sidechains, and wallets down to running ICOs, Stratis has leading experts on board who can provide specialist knowledge. Stratis’ solutions are unique from other consultancies as they are based on Stratis’ own blockchain platform, which is built using C# and .NET.

As a result, solutions created by Stratis benefit from the fact the team is working with technology which they have designed and built. The modular nature of the Stratis blockchain enables a selective approach to be taken, with solutions being built up from robust components.

DLT
Stratis understands that in order to extract commercial value from a blockchain solution, businesses both large and small may require a different type of blockchain. Specifically, they may require a blockchain which:

• Runs on a private network. Due to the confidential nature of the data which needs storing, allowing anyone to view it is not acceptable.
• Is permissioned. Even though access is already restricted because the blockchain is hosted on a private network, further restrictions need to be in place
• covering who can read and write specific data.
• Has the ability to store and track information other than the ownership of a cryptographic token, including the related transactions.
• Does not have cryptocurrency asset associated with it. The motivation to update the blockchain comes from a shared sense of cooperation.

Participants
The big difference between a Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) solution and a public blockchain, where participants are pseudo-anonymous, is that each participant is identified, which is a requirement if access rights are going to be assigned.

Private blockchains are the same as a public blockchain in that consensus on a data update still needs to be reached across all participants who have access to it; in this sense the decentralisation inherently necessary in public blockchains is carried over to the private, permissioned model.

Ultimately, when used in a DLT solution, blockchain’s core ideas are still being used to overcome the need for a single entity to be in charge of managing, storing, and funding a database.

Assets
Blockchains track assets. On the Stratis blockchain, ownership of STRAT changes through transactions, and this is recorded on the blockchain.

Most public blockchains, including the Bitcoin blockchain, follow a similar model, and the only assets tracked are some kind of token. DLT solutions track a wider range of assets other than currencies

which only exist in an electronic form. While cryptocurrencies need to be stored on a public blockchain to encourage maximum uptake and reward participation, DLT solutions often track real-world assets in cases where asset ownership is sensitive information. It is easy to see how tracking real-world assets can go hand in hand with a blockchain solution that limits the participants who can see them.

Taking an example from the pharmaceutical industry, prescriptions can be stored as assets in a DLT solution. A patient owns their prescriptions in the same way that a user holds STRAT on the Stratis blockchain. Instead of each asset being a value of STRAT, one asset is assigned for each prescription. Information pertinent to each prescription is also held on the blockchain. A transaction is used to mark the prescription as fulfilled, which effectively spends the prescription, so it cannot be used again.

Scalability
DLT solutions are also very scalable. This allows for small-scale experimentations to be developed before being scaled up when the value in the solution has been proved.

Conclusion
Stratis’ understanding of what DLT is, and how it can serve enterprise clients, led Stratis to adapt their existing public blockchain technologies to create a DLT solution. In doing so, Stratis has created technology which can handle challenges such as the key issues MediConnect has identified as affecting the pharmaceutical industry.

Interested in MediConnect?
This blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data, it also provides a gold standard in patient safety and duty of care. If you’re interested in this project, please connect with the team on social media :

Telegram: https://t.me/joinchat/G28yZkwgea1XT-Ns66exJg

Twitter : https://twitter.com/Mediconnectuk

Discord : https://discord.gg/8jhwMTJ

Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/company/mediconnectuk-blockchain/

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/mediconnectuk/

Instagram : https://instagram.com/mediconnectuk

Reddit : https://www.reddit.com/r/mediconnect

[MediConnect]

MediConnect is the only blockchain solution intended to revolutionise the way medication is managed and traced in the UK. It will prevent the overprescribing of medication to patients from multiple pharmacies, reduce addiction, and provide traceability of drugs from manufacturers, wholesalers, prescribers and pharmacies all the way through to patients. This will enable the removal of false medicines and the easy recall of drugs within the Pharma system.



Let’s have a look at some core statistics that validate the MediConnect proposal and solution.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/ew00e7hcbG8

€188bn counterfeit medication business annually

Strategy& and PwC regularly publish Strategy + Business, a digital magazine covering business strategies and other related topics. In June 2017, they published a study called “Fighting Counterfeit Pharmaceuticals: New Defenses for an Underestimated — and Growing — Menace” written by Peter Behner, Dr. Marie-Lyn Hecht, Dr. Fabian Wahl.

In this report, they explicitly state, “From falsified Lipitor tablets to imitation Viagra and Cialis capsules, counterfeit pharmaceuticals are a €188 billion (US$200 billion) annual business, making them the largest segment of the €1.6 trillion in fraudulent goods sold worldwide every year.” The second largest segment of the counterfeit goods market is knockoff electronics.

In even what are considered the most secure markets for pharmaceuticals, such as the United States, at least 1% of all medications in circulation today are counterfeit. This is affecting people in staggering numbers, keeping cancer and HIV patients from getting their necessary, life-saving medications. In less secure countries like Africa, that number can be as high as 70% of all medications being fake. In those developing nations, the already high cost of medications make it a very lucrative play for counterfeiters but are affecting millions of people. Africa specifically has a population of about 1.216 billion, which makes up 70% of their population a whopping 851,200,000 people being hurt by people counterfeiting medications for profits!

There are over 1 million deaths per year due to counterfeit medications.

50% of drugs sold online are fraudulent (World Health Organisation [WHO])

The range of counterfeit products reaching markets has also broadened with the increased commercial use of the Internet to provide a dizzying array of both branded and generic drugs. In more than 50% of cases, medicines purchased over the Internet from illegal sites that conceal their physical address have been found to be counterfeit, according to WHO. Developing countries are an obvious target for counterfeiters, because the cost of legitimate drugs may be beyond the reach of much of the population and legal controls are often weak, analysts say.

43% online prescribers were unsafe

Online prescribing companies are prescribing high volumes of antibiotics, inhalers and opioids without talking to patients’ registered GPs, a major report from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has found.

3.1m Brits were prescribed opioids in 2017 — an 80% rise on the 2007 figure.

The numbers tell the story: prescriptions for opioids have risen 80 per cent to 23.8 million in the 10 years to 2017 and are just off an all-time high, according to NHS Digital data released today. Oxycodone, known on the street as “Killer”, grew at one of the fastest rates, with prescriptions tripling to 1.65 million. Buprenorphine surged 300 per cent to 2.2 million.

Prescriptions of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid up to 100 times more potent than morphine, increased by more than 80 per cent. In all, new data shows that 3.1 million people in England were prescribed opioids last year. The UK has become the biggest consumer of painkillers in Europe, with almost a third of all prescriptions for opioids across the EU written here. Ninety per cent of these prescriptions are dished out by GPs.

£263m cost of opioids to the taxpayer

The taxpayer dished out £263 million on prescription opioids, of which about £210 million (90 per cent of the total dispensed for chronic non-cancer pain) went on pills that did not work. The financial waste is mind-boggling.
The current system’s waste to the taxpayer is massive. First, we waste £210 million on drugs that don’t work. Then we pay millions more again to treat the side-effects and impacts of addiction. The total cost of medical care and absenteeism due to chronic pain was calculated 20 years ago at £10 billion. There has been no official update since, despite a quadrupling in prescriptions and the fact that chronic pain accounts for one in five GP appointments

200k Brits are said to be chronic prescription painkiller users

Around 200,000 Brits are said to be chronic prescription painkiller users; admissions to private detox centres are up 30% in two years; and overdoses have almost doubled in a decade, amounting to more than 60 hospital admissions per day.

60+ hospital admissions every day due to overdoses — almost doubled in a decade

Admissions to hospitals in England involving overdoses from opioid painkillers other than heroin surged to 20,130 cases last year. This is a rise of 85 per cent in the past decade, according to a bespoke data set run by NHS Digital for our investigation.

Even more alarming is the rise in poisoning from synthetic opioids: tramadol, fentanyl and buprenorphine. This is logged under a separate category that includes other synthetic narcotics and which has soared 550 per cent to 5,486 admissions.

Together it amounts to more than 60 hospital admissions a day. What’s most worrying is that this is how the crisis began in the US, with a sharp rise in hospital admissions for opioid overdoses.

17,000 lives claimed by America’s opioid crisis in 2016

Given the surge in availability of IMF starting in 2013, the CDC Injury Center began analyzing synthetic opioids (other than methadone) separately from other prescription opioids for 2014 mortality data. This analysis provides a more detailed understanding of the increase in different categories of opioid deaths.

Using this approach, there were more than 17,000 deaths involving this (more specific) category of prescription opioids in 2017, equivalent to about 46 deaths per day.This number is likely an undercount of deaths related to prescription opioids, because it does not include deaths associated with pharmaceutical fentanyl, tramadol, and other synthetic opioids that are used as pain medications.

Want to be part of the change?

This blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data, it also provides a gold standard in patient safety and duty of care.
If you’re interested in this project, please connect with the team on social media :

Telegram : https://t.me/MediConnect

Twitter : https://twitter.com/Mediconnectuk

Discord : https://discord.gg/8jhwMTJ

Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/company/mediconnectuk-blockchain/

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/mediconnectuk/

Instagram : https://instagram.com/mediconnectuk

Reddit : https://www.reddit.com/r/mediconnect

[MediConnect]

You’ve heard about MediConnect but wonder what it is about exactly or simply have some more questions? This Q&A article could help you answer some of your questions. If some info is missing, feel free to reach us on Telegram https://t.me/joinchat/G28yZkwgea1XT-Ns66exJg. We’ll be happy to help you out.



General questions

What is MediConnect ?

MediConnect is a safety net for patients, prescribers, pharmacies and drug manufacturers.
Our vision is to become the gold standard blockchain solution approved by the Pharmacy and Medicine regulators for the prevention of obtaining multiple prescriptions from online and offline pharmacies.

What is the purpose of MediConnect?

MediConnect is the only blockchain solution intended to revolutionise the use of medication in the UK. It will prevent the over-prescribing to patients of medication from multiple pharmacies, reduce addiction, provide traceability of drugs from manufacturers, wholesalers, prescribers and pharmacies all the way through to patients. This will enable the removal of false medicines and the easy recall of drugs within the pharma system.

What triggered this project?

After seeing first-hand the potential impact that the oversupply of medication, via NHS and private routes, can have. In January 2018 two online pharmacy owners and a superintendent pharmacy, discussed what could be done to stop these patients buying across multiple on and offline pharmacies.
Dissatisfied with slow responses from the MHRA, CQC and Public Health England, Joe, Jason & Eddie decided to invest in a solution to the problem and working with their independent teams they eventually collaborated and formed MediConnect. Stratis were approached for advice and as a potential platform to use however, Chris Trew the CEO of Stratis was so impressed with the solution and opportunity to prevent dependency and potential addiction of prescription drugs, he joined the MediConnect team as advisor and Stratis will now provide a bespoke blockchain solution.

Who’s behind MediConnect?

The three main faces of MediConnect are Dexter Blackstock, Joe Soiza and Jason Timms.

Dexter Blackstock, CEO
Dexter Blackstock had a 14-year career as a professional footballer. Following his successful sporting career, Dexter has focused on new technologies and how they can be applied to the pharmaceutical industry.

Joe Soiza, UK Meds Owner and Healthcare Visionary
Joe Soiza has already built UK Meds into one of the UK’s largest private prescribing online pharmacies in just 2 years. He is an accelerated growth specialist with a detailed knowledge of prescription processes used in consumer healthcare.

Jason Timms, PHZ Group Owner & Visionary
Jason Timms has a proven track record growing healthcare businesses from the initial concept all the way to the market. Functioning either as the manufacturer or as a business advisor, he has, in the last 10 years, been behind over 2 million medical devices sold through NHS healthcare, the UK private sector, and health retailers worldwide. Jason has a thorough understanding of both the retail and wholesale sides of the pharmaceutical industry.

Which companies have already agreed to work with MediConnect?

MediConnect have agreed a 5 years contract with the newly formed Addiction Safeguarding Committee (ASC), providing the blockchain solution to help them meet their challenge through a pilot scheme to share data across both independent and NHS prescribers & Pharmacies in the East Midlands.
The purpose of this collaborative ASC working group is to identify, analyse, report on and recommend requirements to local health authorities to help address prescription drug addiction challenges through the better use of quality data across a community of local government, industry, local organisations and patients.
MediConnect is also collaborating with the online pharmacy Tower Health which has signed up to develop a proof-of-concept (“POC”) to integrate MediConnect’s solution to trace products through its supply chain and prevent the misuse of prescription drugs. The MediConnect platform is expected to be seamlessly integrated into Tower Health’s current processes as Tower Health road-tests the solution during the pilot period starting in June. Initially, only a carefully screened portfolio of prescription drugs will be transacted, with the view to include all drugs available in the British National Formulary (BNF) once the POC has been completed.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/ew00e7hcbG8

Blockchain & ICO

Why does it need a blockchain?

Digitisation has transformed many business processes over the past 30 years, and the NHS is no different in requiring technology to do its part in streamlining and delivering health services to everyone in the UK. The MediConnect project is an example of an industry-led transformation to one aspect of health services in the UK.
The pharmaceutical industry is an area where we believe blockchain technology has a unique role to play in improving patient care. At the same time, blockchain provides the audit trail, privacy, and security the sector demands. Instead of being a “big bang” national programme, funded by the Government, like the NPfIT, MediConnect will be launched in one area where it can be monitored by a government-led working group so that, when proven, it can be rolled out to other regions. We can see how a blockchain-based solution can help solve the current issues in the pharmaceutical industry. In parallel, a blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data. Regulatory bodies are extremely important in the pharmaceutical industry, and a blockchain-based solution can give these authorities an overarching view of the daily operations. This would provide a level of transparency that is not possible with conventional solutions.

Why was Stratis chosen for the blockchain?

Stratis Group Ltd were approached for advice as to how blockchain technology could assist with the proposed solution. Chris Trew, founder and CEO of Stratis Group Ltd was keen to assist with designing such a solution to prevent drug dependency and the addiction of prescription drugs. Stratis has a team of in-house blockchain developers and consultants who understand the importance of these key points. Above all, the team knows that when enterprises adopt the correct blockchain-based approach, there is an opportunity to streamline business processes across multiple entities. Across every advance in blockchain from full nodes, smart contracts, sidechains, and wallets down to running ICOs, Stratis has leading experts on board who can provide specialist knowledge. Stratis’ solutions are unique from other consultancies as they are based on Stratis’ own blockchain platform, which is built using C# and .NET.
As a result, solutions created by Stratis benefit from the fact the team is working with technology which they have designed and built. The modular nature of the Stratis blockchain enables a selective approach to be taken, with solutions being built up from robust components.

Why does MediConnect need a token?

A token is required for a number of reasons on the MediConnect blockchain solution. Primarily, it will
be used to fund transactions associated with the MediConnect platform as blockchain requires computer processing power and the Medi Token will fuel said processing capability. The Medi token and private chain will be utilizing Proof-of-Authority consensus algorithms which is used as opposed to a more intensive model in terms of processing power and time i.e. Proof-of Work. In addition, the MediConnect token (MEDI) will to provide an instrument of value in the pharmaceutical industry

What’s MEDI?

MEDI is the token issued by MediConnect.

The total supply of tokens is set to 500 000 000 MEDIs. The tokens are allocated as follows:



The MEDI Token Sale is now open and will close at the end of Q3 2019. To participate in the MEDI Token Sale, prospective purchasers are advised to visit: https://ico.mediconnect.io/

Want to know more about MediConnect?

This blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data, it also provides a gold standard in patient safety and duty of care. If you’re interested in this project, please connect with the team on social media :

Telegram : https://t.me/joinchat/G28yZkwgea1XT-Ns66exJg

Twitter : https://twitter.com/Mediconnectuk

Discord : https://discord.gg/8jhwMTJ

Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/company/mediconnectuk-blockchain/

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/mediconnectuk/

Instagram : https://instagram.com/mediconnectuk

Reddit : https://www.reddit.com/r/mediconnect

[MediConnect]

As you know, the overuse of prescription medication is increasing dramatically leading to addiction. This is because there are no control mechanisms in place to prevent patients purchasing prescribed medication from multiple sources, specifically in the private sector.

Prescription drug

What is a prescription drug ?

A prescription drug (also prescription medication or prescription medicine) is a pharmaceutical drug that legally requires a medical prescription to be dispensed. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs can be obtained without a prescription. The reason for this difference in substance control is the potential scope of misuse, from drug abuse to practicing medicine without a license and without sufficient education. Different jurisdictions have different definitions of what constitutes a prescription drug.

What is prescription drug abuse ?
In the UK, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) characterises problem drug use as a condition that may cause an individual to experience social, psychological, physical or legal problems related to intoxication and/or regular excessive consumption, and/or dependence (ACMD, 1998).
In addition to the clinical observation that many patients may be taking opioid medicines in high doses and deriving little benefit, a UK picture is emerging regarding misuse of prescription opioids by those for whom the drugs are not prescribed. Observers are aware that there are insufficient data available to make firm pronouncements about the extent of prescription opioid misuse in the UK but current publications indicate that misuse of prescription opioids does occur.

Addiction

How do people get addicted to prescription drug ?

There is not a unique pattern to addiction. Prescription drug abuse can happen accidentally. This occurs when a doctor prescribes a potentially addictive drug and the patient grows dependent upon it. It usually then starts with “auto-medication” :
In some cases, patients find that the original dosage simply no longer works, and steadily up their dose, creating tolerance that ultimately leads to dependency.
In other cases, patients find that when they no longer needs the drug, they experience such intense withdrawal symptoms that they continue taking it.
Of course, not all people who abuse prescription drugs have a valid medical prescription.
Because these drugs are highly accessible, the contents of a parent’s medicine cabinet can serve as a gateway drug for teenagers.
People looking for an easy high, rapid relief from psychological pain, or a good night’s sleep may self-medicate by borrowing or stealing a loved one’s prescription.

How could you recognise symptoms of addiction ?

Wether you feel you could be addicted to prescription drugs or it could be one of your family member or colleagues, here are some symptoms of addiction.
Using prescription drugs without a doctor’s prescription, or at higher doses than recommended by a doctor.
Lying to a doctor about symptoms, or “doctor-shopping” to get multiple prescriptions.
Experiencing difficult withdrawal symptoms when attempting to quit using.
Spending a significant portion of each day high on prescription drugs.
Mixing multiple drugs to get a stronger effect.

Why is Mediconnect an useful solution ?

MediConnect is the only blockchain solution intended to revolutionise the use of medication in the UK.
It will prevent the over-prescribing to patients of medication from multiple pharmacies, reduce addiction, provide traceability of drugs from manufacturers, wholesalers, prescribers and pharmacies all the way through to patients. This will enable the removal of false medicines and the easy recall of drugs within the Pharma system.

Want to know more about MediConnect?

This blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data, it also provides a gold standard in patient safety and duty of care. If you’re interested in this project, please connect with the team on social media :

Telegram : https://t.me/joinchat/G28yZkwgea1XT-Ns66exJg

Bounty : https://gleam.io/kc18c/mediconnects-bounty-programme

Twitter : https://twitter.com/Mediconnectuk

Discord : https://discord.gg/8jhwMTJ

Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/company/mediconnectuk-blockchain/

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/mediconnectuk/

Instagram : https://instagram.com/mediconnectuk

Reddit : https://www.reddit.com/r/mediconnect

or download the whitepaper and register for the ICO.

[MediConnect]

The overuse of prescription medication is increasing dramatically. This is because there are no control mechanisms in place to prevent patients purchasing prescribed medication from multiple sources, specifically in the private sector. Regulation is key and processes exist to protect patients from adverse events.

Challenges to fight

There are two primary issues that are currently presenting the pharmaceutical industry with big challenges:

• The overuse of prescription medication is increasing dramatically. This is because there are no control mechanisms in place to prevent patients purchasing prescribed medication from multiple sources, specifically in the private sector.

• Counterfeit drugs are increasingly available, and it can be difficult for the patient to establish provenance.

Why using blockchain in the pharma and healthcare sectors ?

Digitisation has transformed many business processes over the past 30 years, and the NHS is no different in requiring technology to do its part in streamlining and delivering health services to everyone in the UK. The MediConnect project is an example of an industry-led transformation to one aspect of health services in the UK. The pharmaceutical industry is an area where we believe blockchain technology has a unique role to play in improving patient care.

At the same time, blockchain provides the audit trail, privacy, and security the sector demands. Instead of being a “big bang” national programme, funded by government, like the NPfIT, MediConnect will be launched in one area where it can be monitored by a government-led working group so that, when proven, it can be rolled out to other regions.

We can see how a blockchain-based solution can help solve the current issues in the pharmaceutical industry. In parallel, a blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data. Regulatory bodies are extremely important in the pharmaceutical industry, and a blockchain-based solution can give these authorities an overarching view of the daily operations. This would provide a level of transparency that is not possible with conventional solutions.


Photo by Clint Adair on Unsplash

Why is Mediconnect blockchain solution best placed to fix the pressing issues in the Healthcare industry?

A blockchain implementation strategy and platform cannot get off the ground without participants; ideas are not enough. The MediConnect team has experience in the industry and existing agreements with strategic partners.

The project is backed by real life patients and healthcare professionals who will be coming on board from the start, bringing their data with them. That is essential to the success of any blockchain project. MediConnect will commence with a platform being used by two online pharmacies: UK Meds and Tower Health.

The priority for both these pharmacies is duty of care. This mission, combined with their rapid growth and ability to explore IT solutions to improve patient outcomes, has facilitated an agreement to launch on the MediConnect platform

Creating and tracking assets on the MediConnect private blockchain

The MediConnect private blockchain will hold prescriptions and drug shipments as assets conveying the blockchain’s inherent immutability to this data. Patients will hold their prescriptions in a digital wallet, and a drug company can create a batch of medicine as an asset on the blockchain and then transfer it to the wholesaler. The private blockchain will also maintain a record of an asset’s previous “state” when it is spent in a transaction, so, in the case of a batch of medicine, there is an immutable audit trail of its journey.

In other words, the medicine will be tracked from the manufacturer to the wholesaler and then to the online store and the customer. There is also a restriction on who can create assets. Drug assets can only be created by a manufacturer through the MediConnect interface for Manufacturers. Prescription assets can only be created by a doctor through the MediConnect interface for doctors after the patient has passed a Know Your Customer (KYC) check through the Mediconnect interface for patients and therefore has a blockchain identity.

Permissions MediConnect private blockchain

DLT solutions are run on a private network, which means that participants are identified before they can access the blockchain.
To access the MediConnect private blockchain, patients will need to undergo a Know Your Customer (KYC) check before they can be issued with a prescription. The KYC check will be the first line of defence against the over-purchase of prescription medicine, and the identity check itself will be stored on the private blockchain as an asset.

In other words, the patient will now have an immutable blockchain identity. Attempts to pass a KYC check a second time to create a second identity on the private blockchain will fail as a result. The duration of KYC will be very short in order to not prevent blockage of the entire process.
In addition to running on a private network, a DLT solution supports a permissioned model of access. On the MediConnect private blockchain, only a doctor will be able to create a prescription, and only a drug manufacturer will be able to add a batch of medicine.

How the MediConnect private blockchain prevents overuse of prescription medication

Overuse of prescription medication occurs because one healthcare professional does not know or does not have an up-to-date record of a patient’s prescriptions. The MediConnect private blockchain will make prescription history data available to qualified professionals when deemed necessary.

In terms of prescriptions, the healthcare professional will be able to see:

• The date and time for the creation of each prescription.
  
  The data and time each prescription was fulfilled

.

From this data, an online pharmacy’s doctor can make an informed decision on whether to issue a prescription. A related benefit to a doctor being able to see a patient’s entire prescription history is that it will also help prevent accidental drug interactions.
In these situations, a prescribed medicine conflicts with another medication the patient is taking and produces side effects. By having a complete overview, the doctor can use this knowledge and their expertise to stop this from happening.

Pharmacies signed up to the MediConnect solution will allow patients to register an identity on the private blockchain via a portal on their websites or, in the case of a traditional pharmacy, over the counter. After this, provided a healthcare professional has access to the private blockchain, each prescription issued to the patient will be registered on the private blockchain. The healthcare professionals themselves will have an identity on the private blockchain and will be permissioned to read and write medical data; this right is not automatically granted to all participants.

When a healthcare professional issues a prescription, the prescription is written as an immutable asset on the blockchain. Upon fulfilment of an order based on a prescription by a pharmacy, a transaction is made which spends the prescription asset. Because blockchains are immutable, there is no way to “unspend” this transaction. The prescription asset transactions are broadcast across the blockchain network in a matter of minutes after they have been made.

Want to know more about MediConnect?

This blockchain solution can offer new opportunities to the consumer in terms of how they transact and how they manage their own medical data, it also provides a gold standard in patient safety and duty of care. If you’re interested in this project, please connect with the team on social media :

Telegram : https://t.me/joinchat/G28yZkwgea1XT-Ns66exJg

Bounty : https://gleam.io/kc18c/mediconnects-bounty-programme

Twitter : https://twitter.com/Mediconnectuk

Discord : https://discord.gg/8jhwMTJ

Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/company/mediconnectuk-blockchain/

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/mediconnectuk/

Instagram : https://instagram.com/mediconnectuk

Reddit : https://www.reddit.com/r/mediconnect

or download the whitepaper and register for the ICO.

[Kopiev]

MediConnect held the first distribution of tokens, until July 29, the tokens must remain CRS on the balance, as a snapshot of wallets will be made https://twitter.com/MediConnectUK/status/1284587688549638150?s=20