Rexam and Med Time team on compliance packaging solution
The companies claim the Pill Timer medication management system is the first of its kind to have been built into a prescription vial cap, ready for a pharmacist – or indeed the patient - to programme.
With 100 medication commands, as well as audio and visual alerts, dosage times can be designated by a pharmacist, sparking beeps and flashes on the packaging closure when medication is due.
Additionally, a built-in LCD screen enables patients to be reminded every hour after a dosage has been missed, while also displaying important pre and post medication information.
Rexam and Med Time assert the disposable packaging solution, costing $4.95, will significantly reduce the number of self-medicating patients being admitted to hospital; the cause of an annual 300,000 deaths and costing the economy $300bn in the US.
“Innovative packaging solutions to medical problems is the lifeblood of our business,” said Mike Vanderpol, a spokesperson for Rexam, adding: “This strategic alliance enables our customers to help patients with chronic illness and life threatening diseases by effectively managing a medical condition with proper medication.”
Ian Shendale, CEO of Med Time agreed, suggesting that “Until there is a cure for diseases or chronic conditions, the next best thing we can do to help patients maximise health benefits and minimise risk of treatment failure is by [helping them] take medications on time.”
Henry Ford Health System, a US medical group of physicians and researchers, is one of the first to have made use of the product at its hospitals and pharmacies under an agreement with Rexam and Med Time.
“The strategic alliance will enable Henry Ford Continued Care to help chronically ill patients manage their medication more effectively,” said Steve Duda, Director of Pharmacy at Henry Ford Health System, who believes “the Pill Timer is an important breakthrough for our patients, and we’re proud to be early adopters of this medication management system.”
