Innovative data technologies for better healthcare
Digitalization of processes is a key field of innovation for Fresenius Kabi. We use data-driven insights to optimize production, sales, and logistics, and continuously improve the supply of outstanding medical products and services for our patients. At the same time, careful risk assessment and consistent defense against cyberattacks enable us to ensure that customers, partners, and employees can always rely on our products.
Our digital contribution to successful treatment
Consistent digitalization of processes is crucially important at Fresenius Kabi so that we can provide effective support for our customers in their work. We are continually developing new and more powerful digital applications to enhance the quality and safety of treatment, improve the care and quality of life for patients, open up new business areas, and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. Therefore we leverage and make use of a wide range of data derived from various sources including interaction with our customers. These data also help us to optimize our service, and improve communication with customers through digital and analog channels.
Digital strategy: Enhanced foundations for decision-making – competencies explained
Our objective is to provide our customers with precisely the solutions they need to deliver optimum healthcare to their patients. With this end in mind, we target consistent digital transformation. This primarily impacts the areas of innovation, production, delivery, sales, and customer support in our company and its entire value chain. Business intelligence and analytics form the foundation for optimizing our decision-making processes, and many operational workflows.
Alongside the Fresenius IT Executive Board, we have also established the Fresenius Kabi Digital Transformation Board to control the internal digitalization of business processes. The function of the latter is to drive forward a uniform digital strategy, ensure transparency for decision-making, and harmonize initiatives across the Group.
Monitoring and automation: Complex processes firmly under control
During the course of the reporting year 2023, we continued to expand our digital process landscape with the aim of improving the efficiency and quality of our internal and external workflows. Priority areas included production, quality management, sales, and customer service, where we set up platforms for automation and monitoring complex processes. In production and quality management, we use the applications for a variety of purposes including implementation of process control systems for industrial production plants. Furthermore, we apply them to monitor the efficiency of equipment, manage data, and support workflows in laboratories. We also utilize the applications to analyze decision-making processes and automate them wherever possible.
Digital track-and-trace systems follow products and empower us to share information with our customers. In the United States, we use smart labels to automatically manage inventories. The transponders in the labels are based on radio frequency identification technology (RFID) that allows hospitals to automatically monitor the inventory management of specific drugs.
Other examples of our digital processes and applications include the following:
PreparePlus – digital support for parenteral nutrition
In 2023, we launched PreparePlus on the market. The application supports pharmacy personnel in preparing physically and chemically stable formulations for parenteral, i.e. artificial, nutrition of patients.
KetoApp – digital nutrition advice for renal patients
The KetoApp was developed for patients with chronic kidney disease. The application provides patients with nutritional values and other information on food so that they can eat a varied diet appropriate for the disease. The KetoApp has now been rolled out in Chile, Ecuador, Columbia, Mexico, and Peru.
KabiCare® – digital support program for the use of biopharmaceuticals
KabiCare® is a support program for healthcare professionals using our biosimilars products, or for patients who are being treated with biosimilars. The Platform provides them with information about dealing with the individual’s disease and the relevant treatment.
Innovative infusion systems – digital error avoidance for greater patient safety
Since the acquisition of Ivenix Inc. in 2022, we have been offering our customers a broad portfolio of advanced infusion pumps and solutions covering the entire spectrum of healthcare. In 2023, we further expanded the offerings to meet increased customer demand in important healthcare regions such as the United States. At the same time, we improved the clinical workflows by embedding our products in the digital hospital environment. We use these solutions to help reduce the risk of medication errors, and improve patient safety.
Cybersecurity: Group-wide approach to enhancing protection of sensitive data
Ongoing digitalization offers opportunities for increased quality and efficiency in healthcare, while at the same time entailing risks for information security and data protection. Our goal is to minimize these cyber risks, and to prevent damage to patients, customers, and the company itself. This is achieved by following the Group-wide cybersecurity approach adopted by Fresenius. Cyber risks are regularly evaluated and reduced by targeted security measures. This enables patients and our employees and customers to steadfastly rely on the security of our digital solutions and services.
You will find comprehensive information on our Group-wide cybersecurity strategy here.