Traceability and control is possible without the blockchain. There are for example services where you can look up the origin of fish at www.thisfish. info or with fTRACE. However, there are three major benefits with the blockchain:
The data cannot be manipulated, transactions are immutable;
The medical professional, patient, educator or student can secure traceability and control without all participants disclosing all their details to a central party. The level of privacy to enforce can be decided by the participants;
The blockchain creates trust in low cost IT solutions. You can use email, Word, mobile phones etc. and still be sure data is accurate. This allows for example medical staff and patients in rural or less developed areas to consume content with trust and engage with the system.