01 / THE BLUEPRINT
The problem to investigate
A patient may travel between clinics only to learn that a prescribed medicine is unavailable. But a public stock list can quickly become wrong or mislead users into self-medicating.
02 / THE BLUEPRINT
A possible solution
Work with authorised pharmacies or health departments to publish limited, timestamped referral information for specified essential medicines, with a clear call-first warning. Pharmacists retain all dispensing and substitution decisions.
03 / THE BLUEPRINT
Start without an app
A simple daily telephone referral rota between accredited facilities may resolve more than a live public inventory portal.
04 / THE BLUEPRINT
Technology that could help
Use a permissioned staff interface to post last-confirmed stock categories and contacts. Add expiry timestamps, remove stale data and avoid naming patients or sharing prescriptions publicly.
05 / THE BLUEPRINT
Your first experiment
- Secure approval from the relevant health authority and pharmacists.
- Pick a small set of permitted, non-controlled categories for a prototype.
- Run synthetic search scenarios with pharmacy staff.
- Validate referral accuracy and staff workload before involving any patients.
06 / THE BLUEPRINT
People, resources and cost drivers
Requires a registered health-service owner, qualified pharmacist, safe information procedures and regular verification. WHO digital-health guidance: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240093362
07 / THE BLUEPRINT
What to validate — and when to stop
Check whether a listed contact can confirm stock at the time of referral. Stop if users skip clinical assessment, infer treatment advice or travel based on stale listings.
08 / HYPOTHESIS TO TEST
Potential impact and how to measure it
Measure confirmed referral completion, needless travel avoided and error rates. Do not infer clinical effectiveness or improved survival from successful lookup.
09 / THE BLUEPRINT
Risks and safeguards
Supply updates can be wrong, and medicine details may invite theft. Never list controlled stocks or suggest dosage, substitutions or treatment without a clinician.
10 / THE BLUEPRINT
Who might pay or maintain it
An authorised district pharmacy network could operate the directory as part of referral work. Human telephone fallback and regular audits are essential.