VACCINE AND ANTISERUM COLD CHAIN AND STOCK TRACKING SYSTEM
The Vaccine Tracking System (VTS) was developed by the General Directorate of Public Health (GDPH) of the Turkish Ministry of Health. The system ensures biological product safety with evidence-based research. It was established and still operates through service procurement. It is the first and only system in the world to -at once- track vaccine and antisera temperatures, expiration dates, and stock levels at the country level. Its national and international patents were secured in the name of GDPH (Turkish Patent Institute; “A System for Cold Chain and Stock Management” numbered 2017/03813, PCT; WO2019040018 - A System For Cold Chain And Stock Management).

The system was designed to monitor in real-time the temperature in warehouses and refrigerator cabinets across the country forming the nodes of the cold chain. It enables uninterrupted monitoring and tracking of all biological products (vaccines and antisera) shipped and managed by the Ministry of Health, at all locations and in all transport vehicles. It further records and reports the necessary information about products. Lastly, the system allows for product monitoring from designated centers, and the notification of pertinent personnel through SMS, e-mail, and phone call when necessary.

There are 12,298 temperature monitoring devices and 13,447 cold storage units (vehicle / refrigerator cabinet / warehouse) throughout the country. Through the VTS, the Ministry oversees and controls the administration of up to 2 million doses of vaccine per month at more than 10,000 vaccination units. 

The VTS call center alerts pertinent units when product temperature goes out of range or a power cut occurs. The call center provides 24/7 support for all operations.

The number of users defined in the system is 80,000, and the number of active users assigned to units is 65,000. All users are healthcare professionals.

The national immunization supply chain and the Vaccine Tracking System (VTS)

Real-time tracking screen for vaccine transport vehicles showing location, stock level, and cold chain data