A Mixed Integer Programming Optimization of Blood Plasma Supply Chain in the Uncertainty Conditions during COVID-19: A Real Case in Iran

Abstract

Blood and its products, like plasma, are among the most sensitive products for the sake of transportation and storage. Special storage conditions, short shelf life, and lack of particular demand for blood products are among the most significant challenges to managing it. In this respect, it is necessary to implement the problem of supply chain network design in uncertain conditions to find a proper solution for the management of blood products. In this study, a multilevel supply chain is designed to supply plasma in the COVID-19 pandemic. First, the blood is sent to blood donation centers and then to the laboratory. Moreover, after that, it is sent to hospitals. To optimize the transfer rate at each level of the supply chain, a mathematical model is proposed to reduce total costs. Also, the fuzzy programming approach is used to deal with uncertainty in the parameters of the mathematical model. The results of model optimization show that this mathematical model has the required efficiency in finding optimal solutions for the distribution of blood products. According to the obtained results, value objective function in certain and uncertain values is determined. According to the results, the objective certain value is lower than the uncertain value. Uncertain value calculated is of three dimensions. According to this, the categorized objective value increased when the dimension is equal to 0.5. Finally, it shows that when demand increases, more blood and plasma need to be collected to meet the demand, which increases operating and health testing costs and ultimately increases total system costs.