System and method for dispensing, sorting and delivering prescription and non-prescription medications through the post office

• US 20060122729A1
• Filed: 11/15/2005
• Published: 06/08/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Escher Group, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: The Escher Group, Ltd.
• Inventors: Murphy, Michael J., Hoodes, Pamela A.
• Granted Patent: US 7,983,995 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/222
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 1/035 Blister-type containers blisters in general B65D75/36
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/04 Arrangements for time indication or reminder for taking medicine, e.g. programmed dispensers
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/103 for packaging pills or tablets
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0832 Special goods or special handling procedures, e.g. handling of hazardous or fragile goods
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/32 Post and telecommunications franking apparatus G07B17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/60 Business processes related to postal services shipping G06Q10/083; franking apparatus G07B17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/165 using xyz-picker or multi-dimensional article picking arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0014 for vending, access and use of specific services not covered anywhere else in G07F17/00 meter-controlled dispensing of liquid, gas or electricity G07F15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0092 for assembling and dispensing of pharmaceutical articles medical dispensers for private use, A61J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/26 for printing, stamping, franking, typing or teleprinting apparatus ticket printing or the like apparatus G07F17/42
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/40 for devices for accepting orders, advertisements, or the like
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 5/18 specially adapted for controlling several coin-freed apparatus from one place
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/002 Vending machines being part of a centrally controlled network of vending machines
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/13 delivered from dispensers

Abstract

A pharmacy post office receives prescriptions and produces through an automated pill dispensing and packaging system, pharmacy letters that are sorted and delivered as first class or priority mail pieces. The system packages the prescription medication in carriers that are sized to fit into mail sorting machines that sort the first class or priority mail pieces by postal delivery routes. The pharmacy letters include patient mailing address information such that the pharmacy letters are then fed to the mail sorting machines and sorted along with the first class or priority mail pieces for delivery by the postal delivery persons along their customary routes. The system includes a robotic subsystem that dispenses the medication from pill canisters supplied by the drug companies and provides the pills to an automated packaging system. The packaging system feeds the pills into compartments of a carrier base or blister pack and prints on the carrier or applies as labels thereto drug identification information, mailing address information and tracking information, such as a machine readable code. The packaging system then assembles and seals the carrier, such that mailing address information is available for reading by mail sorting machines. The assembled pharmacy letters are then supplied to the mail sorting machines and included in the first class or priority delivery operations of the post office. A track and trace system may be included to provide a delivery schedule to the patient and/or prescribing doctor. The track and trace system is informed when the packaging system provides a pharmacy letter to the mail sorting machines, and the system determines if the pharmacy letter will be included in the same day postal delivery operations or in the next day operations. When a pharmacy letter is delivered by the postal delivery person, he or she scans the tracking code and transmits information back to the system, which then updates its delivery schedule to show the completed delivery.

Claims

1. A system for packaging prescription medication as pharmacy letters, the system including:

A. a system controller for receiving a prescription and providing instructions for dispensing and packaging pills prescribed by the prescription;

B. a pill dispensing system for receiving instructions from the system controller and dispensing pills from pill containers, the pill dispensing system including

a robotic subsystem for selecting canisters and counting out pills in accordance with instructions received from the system controller, and

a conveyancing subsystem for conveying the pills; and

C. a packaging system for receiving the pills from the conveyancing subsystem and instructions from the system controller, the packaging system including

a feeder for depositing the pills in compartments of a base of a carrier that conforms in size to a first class or priority mail piece,

a printer for printing prescription information and the mailing address of the patient on the carrier or one or more labels for attaching to the carrier, and a sealing and folding station for assembling and sealing the carrier to enclose the pills and display the mailing address.

2. The system of claim 1 further including a mail sorter for sorting the pharmacy letters with other mail pieces into delivery routes in accordance with the mailing address.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the mailing address information is printed also as a bar code and the mail sorter scans the bar code to obtain the mailing address information.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein

the packaging subsystem includes a camera that takes one or more pictures of the carrier base after the pills for a given prescription are deposited in the base, the camera providing the pictures to the controller, and

the controller determining from the pictures and the associated prescription information if the correct medication is contained in the carrier base before instructing the packaging subsystem to assemble the carrier.

5. The system of claim 2 wherein the controller further

determines how many of the pills from a given prescription to deliver at a given time and instructs the pill dispensing system and the pill packaging system, and

keeps track of the number of pills delivered and the date and instructs the pill dispensing and pill packaging systems to produce another pharmacy letter for the delivery of additional pills from the given prescription to provide the pills in time to replenish the patient'"'"'s supply.

6. The system of claim 2 further including

the system controller assigning tracking identifiers to the respective prescriptions;

the packaging system including on the pharmacy letters machine readable codes that include the tracking identifiers;

a track and trace system for determining and updating delivery schedules for the respective pharmacy letters, the track and trace system including

a controller for maintaining delivery schedules based on when the respective pharmacy letters are provided to the mail sorting machines,

a wireless scanner/transmitter for scanning or reading identifier information from the pharmacy letters and transmitting delivery confirmations when the pharmacy letters are deposited at patient drop-off sites,

the controller receiving the delivery confirmations and updating the delivery schedules.

7. The system of claim 6 further including a customer satisfaction system for receiving the delivery confirmations from the track and trace system and contacting the patient to provide associated prescription related information.

8. The system of claim 1 further including

a government information system database which contains geographic and residential occupancy information,

the system controller, in response to pill designations and geographic area and residency information, providing instructions for the preparation of pharmacy letters to deliver the designated pills to the residents in the specified geographic area.

9. The system of claim 1 further including

a database system for receiving prescription information from the system controller and providing to the system controller indications of adverse patient reactions, the database system including a patient information database that contains medication and medical condition information and a drug interaction database;

the system controller responding to the indications by contacting the prescribing doctor for permission before instructing the system to fill the prescription.

10. A pharmacy-post office including:

A. one or more mail sorting machines for sorting mail pieces by postal delivery routes and providing the sorted mail pieces for postal delivery;

B. a system controller for receiving prescriptions and providing prescription information and instructions for dispensing and packaging the prescriptions to other system components;

C. a pill dispensing system for selecting pill containers and counting out pills in accordance with instructions received from the controller;

D. a packaging system for packaging the pills in carriers that conform in size to mail pieces that can be sorted through the one or more mail sorting machines, the packaging system

receiving the medication for one or more prescriptions from the pill dispensing system and packaging instructions from the system controller and selectively depositing the pills in compartments of a base of a given carrier in accordance with the instructions,

receiving prescription information and a mailing address from the system controller and printing the information and the mailing address on the carrier or one or more labels for attaching to the carrier,

assembling the carrier to enclose the pills and display the mailing address information, and

providing the assembled carrier to the mail sorting machines for sorting and inclusion in the postal deliveries.

11. The pharmacy post office of claim 10 wherein the controller

determines how many of the pills from a given prescription to deliver at a given time and instructs the pill dispensing system and the pill packaging system,

keeps track of the number of pills delivered and the date and instructs the pill dispensing system and pill packaging system to dispense additional pills from the given prescription at a date that replenishes the patient'"'"'s supply.

12. The pharmacy post office of claim 10 further including

the system controller assigning a tracking identifier to the prescription;

the packaging system including on the pharmacy letter a machine readable code that includes the identifier; and

a track and trace subsystem for determining and updating one or more delivery schedules for the respective pharmacy letters, the track and trace system including;

a controller for maintaining the one or more delivery schedules based on when the respective pharmacy letters are provided to the mail sorting machines,

a wireless scanner/transmitter for reading the codes and transmitting delivery confirmations when pharmacy letters are scanned before deposit at associated drop-off sites,

the controller receiving the delivery confirmations and updating the one or more delivery schedules.

13. The pharmacy post office system of claim 10 further including

a government information system database which contains residential occupancy information,

the system controller providing instructions in response to pill designations and geographic area information for the preparation and delivery of pharmacy letters to provide the designated pills to the residents in the specified geographic area.

14. A method for packaging prescription medication as a pharmacy letter, the method including the steps of:

A. receiving a prescription and determining how many pills to deliver to the patient;

B. instructing a robotic subsystem to dispense the pills;

C. feeding the pills to compartments of a carrier that conforms in size to a first class or priority mail piece;

D. printing prescription information and a mailing address on the carrier or one or more labels for attaching to the carrier; and

E. assembling the carrier to enclose the pills and display the mailing address information for reading by machine.

15. The method of claim 14 further including the step of providing the pharmacy letter to a mail sorter that sorts the pharmacy letter as a mail piece into a postal delivery route in accordance with the mailing address.

16. The method of claim 14 further including the steps of

taking an image of the carrier base after the pills for a given prescription are deposited in the base, and

verifying the correct pills are included in the base before the carrier is assembled.

17. The method of claim 14 further including the steps of

keeping track of the number of pills delivered and the date of delivery, and

repeating steps B-E to package additional pills from the given prescription in a next pharmacy letter for delivery to the patient.

18. The method of claim 15 further including the steps of

associating tracking identifiers with the respective prescription,

including the tracking identifiers on the corresponding pharmacy letters,

maintaining delivery schedules based on the time and date the respective pharmacy letters are provided to the mail sorting machines,

scanning or reading identifier information from the pharmacy letters and transmitting delivery confirmations when the pharmacy letters are deposited at associated drop-off sites, and

updating the one or more delivery schedules when delivery confirmations are received.

19. The method of claim 14 further including the steps of

receiving residential occupancy information, prescription medication information, and geographical area information, and

repeating steps B-E to prepare pharmacy letters to deliver the designated pills to the residents in the specified geographic area.

20. A method for delivery of prescription medication through post office delivery routes, the method including the steps of:

A. receiving prescriptions;

B. instructing a robotic pill dispensing subsystem to select and count out pills;

C. feeding the pills into a carrier that conforms in size to mail pieces that can be sorted through the one or more mail sorting machines and including on or in the carrier prescription related information;

D. printing on or applying to the carrier a mailing address;

E. assembling the carrier to enclose the pills and display mailing address information so as to be readable by the mail sorting machines, and

F. providing the assembled carrier to the mail sorting machines for sorting as a mail piece for delivery based on the mailing address information; and

G. delivering the pharmacy letter as a sorted mail piece to the patient.

21. The method of claim 20 further including the steps of

associating tracking identifiers with the respective prescriptions,

providing the tracking identifiers on the corresponding pharmacy letter,

maintaining one or more delivery schedules for the respective pharmacy letters based on when the pharmacy letters are provided to the mail sorting machines,

reading the identifiers and transmitting delivery confirmations when pharmacy letters are deposited at associated drop-off sites, and

updating the one or more delivery schedule database.