Redesign of vaccine distribution networks

• DOI: 10.1111/itor.12758
• Publication Date: 2019-12-03T02:55:14Z
• Authors: Jung Lim; Bryan A. Norman; Jayant Rajgopal
• Keywords: Cold chain

Abstract In most low‐ and middle‐income countries supported by the World Health Organization's Expanded Program on Immunization, vaccines are distributed through a legacy medical supply chain that is typically not cost‐efficient. Vaccines require storage transport in temperature‐controlled environment; this requires “cold” distribution with capacity constraints cold transport. We propose an approach to redesigning vaccine includes locating set of intermediate centers (DCs) determining flow paths from central store (where received into country) one or more these health clinics where vaccination actually occurs. addition, vehicles allocate each path, devices use at clinic DC determined. The redesigned network does have follow current four‐tiered, arborescent structure commonly found practice, but can alternative structures. To redesign optimally, we develop mixed‐integer programming (MIP) model be used for small‐to‐medium‐sized problems also present hybrid heuristic–MIP method obtain good solutions larger problems. Numerical results shown using data reflecting networks several sub‐Saharan Africa.