Variable dose dispensing system

• US 10,210,313 B2
• Filed: 05/16/2016
• Issued: 02/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Carefusion 303 Incorporated (Becton, Dickinson & Co)
• Original Assignee: Carefusion 303 Incorporated (Becton, Dickinson & Co)
• Inventors: Utech, Thomas, Davis, Kim E., Jaskela, Maria C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Waggoner, Timothy R
• Application Number:
  US15/155,767
• Publication Number:
  US 20160259915A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,009 Days
• Field of Search: 700231-244, 705 2
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0092 for assembling and dispensing of pharmaceutical articles medical dispensers for private use, A61J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/13 delivered from dispensers
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms

Abstract

A variable dose dispensing system may include a processor and memory. The processor may receive a request for a variable dose order of a medication, such as from a user. The processor may request an amount of the medication to be administered, and receive, in response to the request, an indication of the amount to be administered. The processor may verify that the amount to be administered is within a range of the variable dose order. The processor may determine an item in a local inventory that contains at least the amount of the medication to be administered, and may dispense the item. If an amount of the dispensed item exceeds the amount to be administered, such as by a waste amount, the processor may display an indication of the waste amount to the user, and may transmit a notification of the waste amount, such as to a management server.

Claims

1. A method for variable dose dispensing, the method comprising:

receiving a request for a variable dose order of a medication;

requesting an amount of the medication to be administered;

receiving, in response to the requesting, an indication of the amount of the medication to be administered;

determining, by a processor, at least one item of a plurality of items in a local inventory, the at least one item comprising at least the amount of the medication to be administered;

dispensing the at least one item;

displaying an indication of a waste amount of medication dispensed in excess of the amount of the medication to be administered; and

displaying an indication of an amount of time that a recipient of the medication has to dispose of the waste amount of medication.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, to a management system, an identifier of a person who requested the variable dose order of the medication, the amount of the medication to be administered, and an item amount of the at least one item dispensed or the waste amount of medication.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

initiating, by the management system, a timer associated with the waste amount of medication and the identifier.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

determining, based on the timer, when a time set for disposing of the waste amount of medication has been exceeded.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

transmitting, by the management system, a notification that the waste amount of medication has not been disposed of by the person who requested the variable dose order of the medication.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

transmitting, by the management system, one of an indication that no additional medication should be dispensed to the person who requested the variable dose order of the medication and an indication that access privileges of the person who requested the variable dose order of the medication should be revoked.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining, by the processor, the at least one item of the plurality of items in the local inventory, the at least one item comprising at least the amount of the medication to be administered further comprises:

determining, by the processor, the at least one item of the plurality of items in the local inventory such that the waste amount of medication is minimized relative to the plurality of items in the local inventory.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the dispensing the at least one item further comprises:

allowing a person who requested the variable dose order to physically access the at least one item while preventing the person from accessing others of the plurality of items in the local inventory.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from a pharmacy system, an indication of a variable dose group for the variable dose order, wherein the variable dose group indicates the plurality of items in the local inventory from which the at least one item is determined for the variable dose order.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the variable dose group comprises a first item that is indicated as an equivalency of multiple second items.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first item comprises the amount of the medication to be administered and the first item not in the local inventory, and the dispensing the at least one item further comprises:

dispensing the second items.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, prior to the dispensing, an identifier of a user; and

authenticating the identifier of the user, wherein the at least one item is only dispensed if the identifier of the user is authenticated.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein if there is not the at least one item in the local inventory that comprises at least the amount of the medication to be administered, the method further comprises:

requesting an identifier of a proximally located dispensing device that contains the amount of the medication to be administered;

receiving the identifier of the proximally located dispensing device; and

displaying, to a user who requested the variable dose order, the identifier of the proximally located dispensing device.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising providing navigational directions to the proximally located dispensing device.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising verifying that the amount of the medication to be administered is within a range of the variable dose order.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving the variable dose order from a pharmacy system.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

logging the waste amount as undocumented waste if the waste amount of medication is not disposed of at a time when the medication is dispensed.

18. A non-transitory machine-readable medium embodying instructions that, when executed by a machine, allow the machine to perform a method for managing variable dose dispensing, the method comprising:

receiving a request for a variable dose order of a medication;

requesting an amount of the medication to be administered;

receiving, in response to the requesting, an indication of the amount of the medication to be administered;

determining, by a processor, at least one item of a plurality of items in a local inventory, the at least one item comprising at least the amount of the medication to be administered;

dispensing the at least one item;

displaying an indication of a waste amount of medication dispensed in excess of the amount of the medication to be administered; and

displaying an indication of an amount of time that a recipient of the medication has to dispose of the waste amount of medication.

19. A system for managing variable dose dispensing, the system comprising:

one or more processors; and

a memory including instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors,

cause the one or more processors to;

receive a request for a variable dose order of a medication;

request, in response, an amount of the medication to be administered;

receive, in response to the requesting, an indication of the amount of the medication to be administered;

determine at least one item of a plurality of items in a local inventory, the at least one item comprising at least the amount of the medication to be administered;

dispense the at least one item;

display an indication of an amount of time that a recipient of the medication has to dispose of a waste amount; and

transmit a notification that the waste amount has not been disposed of if the amount of time that the recipient of the medication has to dispose of the waste amount is exceeded.