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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Health Economics
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1446073
This article is part of the Research Topic Healthcare Coverage and Payment Reforms in Low- and Middle-Income Countries View all 8 articles

Z-DEA-FMEA: Identifying Effective Strategies for Optimizing the HIV Drugs Supply Chain Using Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Approaches

Provisionally accepted
Amirkeyvan Ghazvinian Amirkeyvan Ghazvinian *Bo Feng Bo Feng Junwen Feng Junwen Feng
  • Internet Finance Science and Technology Research Center, School of Economics and Management, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The logistics of the HIV drug supply chain are critical for ensuring the timely delivery of lifesaving medications to vulnerable populations. This study aims to identify and analyze key determinants influencing supply chain efficiency, focusing on delivery timelines and freight costs. Employing two analytical frameworks, Z-SWARA-DEA-FMEA and Z-WASPAS-DEA-FMEA, the research evaluates how factors such as country of origin and destination, customs processes, local tariffs, and regional challenges impact supply chain performance. The objectives include comparing the methodologies to determine their relative strengths in capturing these dynamics and providing actionable insights for optimization. Key findings reveal that the country-specific challenges significantly shape delivery efficiency and costs, with customs processes and local tariffs emerging as critical barriers. While the Z-SWARA-DEA-FMEA method emphasizes regional variations and their impact, Z-WASPAS-DEA-FMEA highlights the overarching influence of national factors. The study also identifies the importance of the management entity in ensuring efficient operations, as well as the nuanced effects of 'Vendor INCO Terms' on logistics. Other influential factors include product attributes, shipment modes, and financial considerations such as weight and insurance costs.This research offers a comprehensive framework for understanding and optimizing HIV drug logistics, emphasizing the need for adaptive strategies that balance cost-effectiveness and timely delivery in an increasingly complex global health landscape. The findings provide a foundation for stakeholders to make informed decisions and improve supply chain resilience.

    Keywords: HIV drugs, Risk factors, supply chain, Z-number, FMEA, DEA

    Received: 08 Jun 2024; Accepted: 14 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Ghazvinian, Feng and Feng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Amirkeyvan Ghazvinian, Internet Finance Science and Technology Research Center, School of Economics and Management, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.