#strippackaging#blisterpack#pouchpackaging#advantagesofstrippack#alternativetoblisterpack#pillpack

The two main packaging systems in the pharmacy industry are Strip packaging and Blister Packaging. Strip packaging is a good alternative to blister pack. Before discussing the advantages of strip pack over blister pack, let's see what are they

What is Blister Pack?

Blister packs are a type of pre-formed, plastic packaging that seal individual tablets until they are taken. Blister packs can enhance the integrity of the medication by improving shelf life and providing a barrier against tampering[1]

#adherencepackager#compliancepackager#alternativetoblisterpack#multidosepackagingmachine

One of the common ways to achieve medication adherence by pharmacies is to offer blister packs. But in this pandemic era, the pharmacy industry require an alternative to blister packaging that require less manual interaction. Adherence packaging or compliance packaging can be achieved easily with pouch/ strip which is a good alternative to blister.

At Unidoses we have several multi-dose pouch packaging options fully-automated and semi-automated as well. We can interface with your pharmacy software so that we can receive the prescriptions from your pharmacy system software and package the prescriptions accordingly.

Unidoses helps pharmacies to start offer adherence packing to customers without breaking the bank. Out Tabletop AdherencePackRx is a very affordable and user friendly model which won't even take a lot of your pharmacy space.

All the drugs a patient at a time takes in one pouch to help them be adherent to their drug regimen. You organize the drugs by dose, days of the week and time of day that the patient takes them. That makes it easier for the patient to take the right drugs at the right time.

Compliance packaging also known  Adherence packaging means that you  put all the drugs a patient takes at a time  
one  it can be done  two ways  either  blister packs or  pouches to help them be adherent to their drug regimen 
The drugs can be organized by dose days  the week and time  day that the patient  takes them That makes it easier  
the patient to take the right drugs  at the right time

Several pharmacies have now interested in offering customized drug packagings to their patients. This is especially beneficial for individuals who are unable to take their prescriptions as prescribed due to their physical limitations or a combination of things. Patients with prescriptions that are solid oral medications see most benefits from multi-dose adherence packaging.

• Individuals can now benefit from the customized pharmaceutical packing solutions from pharmacies and hospitals, which enable them to maintain their independence in terms of taking their medications at the specified times.

• Easy to use and handle

• These customized pouch packages are more hygienic, clean and convenient compared to existing systems

• There are many ways to mix up multidosage medications but most of these will be prevented by compliance packaging. Each individual pouch contains the prescribed dose with clearly labeled packs reduce the chances of taking wrong medications at time.

• Reduced time and less stress in a more organized way

There are advantages for the pharmacies as well for offering adherence pouch packaging for their patients

Unidoses proudly introduces SmartPackRx, MultiDose Packager for compliance/adherence packaging at affordable prices.

References

[1] Benefits of Customized Medication Packaging System; RappsPharmacy.com | Dec 24, 2014: https://www.rappspharmacy.com/benefits-customized-medication-packaging-system/

During a period wherein "contactless" and "contact free" have become the God words, automated packaging machines do exactly that. Packaging and verification of medication is done automatically through these machines, verifying the size, color and shape of each pill in the pouch to check them quickly, accurately, and safely. While manual packaging methods touch each patients’ prescriptions while automated systems keep patients and pharmacists safe by reducing contact. In addition to providing less hands-on interaction with medications, automation also greatly reduces the time-consuming process of manual verification.[1]

Automated packaging is a cost-effective way that pharmacies can recover financially after experiencing reduced revenues and high operating costs from the pandemic.[2] Brought down expenses of automated systems put automation at go after even the littlest of pharmacies and community pharmacies will become more secure and more productive as innovation keeps on developing.

Confusion of drug names arise especially because of look-alike or sound-alike name attributes are a major factor to medication related adverse effects. TALLman lettering is one of many risk mitigation strategies to minimize errors involving LASA drug names.

By applying TALLman lettering to drug names can alert the healthcare professional that the drug name can be confused with another drug name.

Syringe Labels - right drug name, right concentration, right dose, right expiry time

Theyrecommendrequirementsforuser-appliedsyringelabels,including:[2]

• The use of self-adhesive labels that can be applied to polyethylene syringes and can withstand isopropanol exposure

• The printing of the drug name on the upper half of the label

• The use of diagonal stripes when indicating a drug of opposite action

• The provision of space to hand-write additional information, like drug concentration

• Lower-case lettering with an initial upper-case letter

• In certain cases, the use of upper-case letters for distinguishing parts of similar drugs names

• Specific color specifications for each drug class

In the world of new technologies, there are sufficient opportunities for hospital pharmacies to leverage automation that may bring advantages, all while decreasing operating costs. Given the current pressure for hospitals to find ways to reduce spending, and the fact that many small number of bed hospitals are still manually unit-dosing their medications, automated tabletop packaging machines can transform how many hospitals operate and can be the ticket to significant cost savings[1]

GS1 standards, the use of it across the global healthcare systems can help reduce medication errors and save lives. The GS1 barcodes help to enhance safety by making use of machine-based checking. These barcodes help caregivers to match patients with the correct medication or medical device, administered by an authorized nurse. This is a significant time saver and eliminates manual data entry errors.

No one intends to make a serious medication error. But more than 7,000 Americans die each year when clinicians improperly prescribe, transcribe, process, or administer medications.[1] Harmful medical errors are estimated to occur in 1-10% of patients.

Most of these medication errors originated during the prescriber ordering and nurse administration phases of the medication process. The findings of these medication error studies that show the majority of medication errors occur at the patient bedside which is 38%.

The nurse then scans patient's bracelet ( barcoded), The Patient's medication record will appear. It is matched with a barcode on medication that is prescribed specifically for the person.

How it works

• Patient is assigned a bracelet that contains an assigned barcode that usually consisits of their Hospital number.

• When medication is ordered, it gets sent to the computerized pharmacy system for verification by the pharmacist.

• The nurse scans their barcode name badge and enters password.