UK’s NHS Taps Blockchain Tech to Monitor Coronavirus Vaccine Cold Chain
The U.K. National Health Service (NHS) is working with blockchain platform Hedera Hashgraph to monitor COVID-19 vaccines’ temperature while in cold storage.
Asset-monitoring company Everyware will provide software to track the vaccines’ temperature around the clock, while Hedera’s distributed ledger technology will provide the NHS with a tamperproof and efficient record of the data, according to a press release Tuesday.
NHS facilities in the U.K.’s South Warwickshire, Stratford Upon Avon and Warwick hospitals region will be using the technology initially, with a wider rollout planned as vaccine distribution progresses.
The vaccines need to be kept well below freezing in order to prevent spoiling, so accurate monitoring is essential.
“As we begin to prepare the roll out of these new COVID-19 vaccines, with the specific temperature requirements, we recognize the importance of utilizing their same tracking and monitoring capabilities,” said Steve Clarke, electro biomedical engineering manager at South Warwickshire NHS, in the announcement.
As of Jan. 18, the U.K. has provided over 4 million people with their first dose of the vaccine, according to a tweet from Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
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