19 December 2024, Philippines – GS1 Philippines, the leading authority on local barcode standards, is advocating for the use of barcode technology in healthcare to streamline workflow for health professionals, strengthening the aim for enhanced patient safety.
This push for innovating healthcare comes as the World Health Organization’s Global Strategy on Digital Health 2020-2025 highlights the transformative potential of digital transformation in healthcare. Technologies like tools for data storage and exchange, remote data capture, and virtual care are proven to enhance health outcomes by improving medical diagnoses, treatment decisions, digital therapeutics, clinical trials, and fostering evidence-based knowledge for healthcare professionals.
Building on this global vision, GS1 Philippines has been advocating for leveraging global standards and implementing barcode technology to enhance digital information accessibility for healthcare workers to attain efficient workflow and address medical supply chain inefficiencies.
By using GS1 Standards, health manufacturers and distributors can record data in clinical systems, enhancing the speed and accuracy of data capture. Healthcare providers can leverage these barcodes for patient identification, medication administration, and tracking of medical supplies and equipment, optimizing inventory management and streamlining overall workflow.
“Integrating barcode technology is not just about digitalization — it’s about creating a safer, more transparent healthcare system that improves patient care, reduces errors, and ensures an efficient supply chain of authentic medicines and medical products, protecting patients from counterfeit goods,” said Teodoro Padilla, Executive Director of the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP) and Trustee of GS1 Philippines.
To further elevate awareness about barcode technology in the sector, GS1 Philippines participated in the recent GS1 Healthcare Roadshow in Hong Kong, where healthcare professionals and administrators were introduced to the transformative potential of barcodes. The event showcased how barcodes streamline patient care by enabling accurate capture and automatic sharing of vital medical product information.
The organization also joined the GS1 Asia-Pacific Forum 2024, a regional event with over 150 delegates from GS1 Global and 16 Asia-Pacific economies. This forum provided training sessions on 2D barcodes, digital links, and registries, emphasizing global digital transformation strategies and fostering stronger engagement with hospitals and healthcare providers.
GS1 Philippines’ initiatives align with the Department of Health (DOH) as challenges are recognized in digitalizing the country’s healthcare system and improving access to essential medicines. The department aims to make healthcare accessible to Filipinos through the integration of technology.
“At GS1 Philippines, we believe that adopting streamlined barcode technology in healthcare is crucial for enhancing patient safety and improving the efficiency of healthcare workflow. This innovation empowers health professionals to deliver better care by having a tool for data integration and interoperability,” said Roberto “Bobby” Claudio, President of GS1 Philippines.
The organization also visited the CUHK Medical Centre in Hong Kong to explore advanced smart medical technologies, including an automated system for healthcare workers and a vending machine that dispenses pre-programmed medical garments, highlighting data-driven efficiency and labor-saving innovations.
GS1’s global healthcare division, GS1 Healthcare, has been making efforts since 2008 to drive the adoption and implementation of GS1 Standards for patient safety and supply chain efficiency. Moreover, GS1 stakeholders also recognize the significant role of collaboration among healthcare partners in attaining improved patient outcomes.
GS1 Philippines is committed to preparing local industries for the global shift to 2D barcodes by 2027, aligning with international standards. This initiative will boost the country’s competitiveness in the global market and enable hospitals and healthcare providers to leverage 2D barcodes like GS1 DataMatrix to elevate operations.
For more information about GS1 Philippines’ implementation of GS1 standards and membership, visit https://www.gs1ph.org/ or email membership@gs1ph.org.
