Philips offers electronic medication dispenser for home care in Benelux countries
28 February 2014
Royal Philips has launched a home medication dispensing service with automated, compact dispensers loaded with personalized pre-packaged medication and a dedicated web-based IT connection to the patient’s care giver organisation and pharmacist.
Philips is rolling out the new service in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg (Benelux), expanding its home healthcare activities to home care, elderly care and nursing home organisations.
By offering the prescribed medication at the preprogrammed time, as well as monitoring and support, the service aims to increase medication adherence among seniors and chronically ill patients. The aim is to improve their health and quality of life, while reducing avoidable hospital stays, adverse events and healthcare costs, and supporting healthcare organizations.
The Philips automated medication dispenser
The dispenser automatically reminds the person each time medication is due, checks it is the right medication at the right time and then releases and opens individual pouches according to the patient’s prescribed regimen. This motivates the patient to adhere to personal medication plans and minimizes the risk of taking the wrong medication or dose. The solution monitors medication usage and remotely alerts nursing staff when medication is not taken, helping to streamline the normally time-consuming task of medication management and allowing them to focus on additional care issues.
“Technology-enabled care at home will play an increasingly important role in helping care providers cope with the pressing challenges presented by rising numbers of people with chronic conditions,” said Henk Valk, General Manager Philips Healthcare Benelux. “For more than a decade, Philips has been a pioneer in the home healthcare market in the Netherlands, and we are continuously looking to expand our offering through collaborations, innovative technologies and services that can make a difference where it matters for patients, their families and healthcare providers.”
“Poor medication adherence is relatively common and has dramatic effects on individual and population-level health,” said Dick Herfst, CEO of ZZG zorggroep, a Dutch home care, elderly care and nursing home organization that is already using the initial version of the service. “Helping clients take their medication correctly and in time is an important, but often time-consuming task for our community nurses. With the help of this medication dispensing service, we see clients are more compliant and independent while their relatives feel more comfortable.”
The home medication dispensing service for the Benelux is based on a medication pouch system that is standardized and broadly available in the Netherlands. To bring the solution to market in the Netherlands, Philips is collaborating with the Dutch pharmaceutical telehealth company Innospense, that initially developed the integrated medication dispensing service, and is assisted by e-health implementation provider Focus Cura. Philips will also work with pharmacies to ensure the patient’s prescribed regimen is synchronized with the intelligent dispensing device in the patient’s home.