Medication dose administration and inventory management

• US 20090012820A1
• Filed: 12/28/2007
• Published: 01/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Catalyst Healthcare Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Catalyst Healthcare Ltd.
• Inventors: Ritchie, Theodore, Bishop, Shane, Andricevic, Marina
• Application Number:
  US12/006,099
• Publication Number:
  US 20090012820A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/10 relating to drugs or medications, e.g. for ensuring correct administration to patients

Abstract

A system for managing administration of prescribed medications to patients is disclosed. The system includes a server for receiving prescription fill requests which are based on prescriptions for the prescribed medications, and for causing uniquely identifiable medication packages to be produced based on the prescription fill requests and in conformity with the prescriptions. Each medication package contains a single dose of at least one of the prescribed medications. The server is further for receiving and maintaining medication package records specifying the contents of each particular medication package. The system includes an interface for providing access to the prescriptions and the medication package records for validating administration of the prescribed medications to the patients. Each single dose of prescribed medication is uniquely identifiable by identifying the medication package containing that single dose and by accessing the medication package records specifying the contents of that medication package.

Claims

1. A system for managing administration of prescribed medications to patients, the system comprising:

a server for receiving prescription fill requests which are based on prescriptions for the prescribed medications, for causing uniquely identifiable medication packages to be produced based on the prescription fill requests and in conformity with the prescriptions, each medication package containing a single dose of at least one of the prescribed medications, and for receiving and maintaining medication package records specifying the contents of each particular medication package; and

an interface for providing access to the prescriptions and the medication package records for validating administration of the prescribed medications to the patients

wherein each single dose of prescribed medication is uniquely identifiable by identifying the medication package containing that single dose and by accessing the medication package records specifying the contents of that medication package.

2. The system according to claim 1 wherein each medication package is uniquely associated with a corresponding unique package ID and is uniquely identifiable by that unique package ID.

3. The system according to claim 2 wherein causing uniquely identifiable medication packages to be produced comprises causing, for each medication package, a barcode uniquely encoding the unique package ID of that medication package to be imprinted on that medication package, and wherein identifying that medication package comprises reading the barcode imprinted on that medication package.

4. The system according to claim 3 wherein the medication packages are produced by an automated medication packager, and wherein, for each medication package, the barcode encoding the unique package ID of that medication package is imprinted on that medication package by the automated medication packager.

5. The system according to claim 4 wherein the unique package ID of each medication package is generated by the automated medication packager.

6. The system according to claim 5 wherein the medication package records are received from the automated medication packager.

7. The system according to claim 6 wherein each unique package ID comprises a barcode header and a bag ID, wherein the barcode header uniquely identifies a corresponding plurality of medication packages associated with a corresponding specific one of the patients.

8. The system according to claim 2 wherein causing uniquely identifiable medication packages to be produced based on the prescription fill requests and in conformity with the prescriptions comprises filtering from each prescription fill request doses of prescribed medication exceeding the prescriptions.

9. The system according to claim 8 wherein specifying the contents of any particular medication package includes specifying:

for each single dose of prescribed medication contained in that medication package;

a size of the single dose,

an identification of the prescribed medication, and

administration instructions; and

for all of the prescribed medications contained in that medication package;

a specific one of the patients, and

an administration date and time.

10. The system according to claim 9 wherein specifying the contents of any particular medication package further includes specifying, for each single dose of prescribed medication contained in that medication package, an expiry date and a lot number.

11. A system for tracking a dose of a medication and for validating an administration of the dose of the medication to a patient, the system comprising:

a module for receiving prescription information and a data record, each associated with the dose of the medication, the data record being further associated with a unique package ID uniquely identifying a medication package containing the dose of the medication and no other dose of the medication;

a database for receiving and storing the data record in association with the unique package ID, and for receiving and storing the prescription information; and

an interface for providing access to the database for accessing the data record and the prescription information for validating the administration of the dose of the medication to the patient, wherein the data record is accessed by reference to the unique package ID.

12. The system according to claim 11 wherein the module is further for conforming a prescription fill request to the prescription information thereby creating a filtered fill request, the prescription fill request being based on the prescription information, and for causing the medication package to be produced in accordance with the filtered fill request.

13. The system according to claim 12 wherein conforming the prescription fill request to the prescription information comprises filtering off a dose of another medication which exceeds a prescription period of the prescription information.

14. The system according to claim 12 wherein causing the medication package to be produced in accordance with the filtered fill request comprises transmitting the filtered fill request to an automated medication packager thereby causing the automated medication packager to produce the medication package, to generate the unique package ID and the data record, and to transmit the data record in association with the unique package ID to the module.

15. The system according to claim 14 wherein transmitting the filtered fill request to the automated medication packager further causes the automated medication packager to imprint on the medication package a barcode uniquely encoding the unique package ID.

16. The system according to claim 15 wherein transmitting the filtered fill request to the automated medication packager further causes the automated medication packager to imprint on the medication package human-readable information based on the prescription information and the data record.

17. The system according to claim 16 wherein the medication package further contains a dose of at least one other medication.

18. The system according to claim 16 wherein accessing the data record by reference to the unique package ID comprises entering the unique package ID into the interface.

19. The system according to claim 18 wherein entering the unique package ID into the interface comprises using a barcode reader to read the barcode imprinted on the medication package, the barcode encoding the unique package ID.

20. The system according to claim 19 wherein validating the administration of the dose of the medication to the patient comprises comparing the data record and the prescription information.

21. The system according to claim 20 wherein the data record is further uniquely associated with the patient, and validating the administration of the dose of the medication to the patient further comprises identifying the patient.

22. The system according to claim 20 wherein the interface is further for displaying at least a portion of each of the data record and the prescription information, and wherein validating the administration of the dose of the medication to the patient further comprises comparing the human-readable information imprinted on the medication package with the at least a portion of the data record or the at least a portion of the prescription information.

23. A system for producing a uniquely identifiable medication package containing a single dose of a prescribed medication, the system comprising:

an interface for receiving a prescription fill request which is based on a prescription for the prescribed medication;

a processor for conforming the prescription fill request to the prescription thereby producing a filtered fill request, and for causing the medication package to be produced in accordance with the filtered fill request, wherein the medication package is uniquely identifiable by a unique package ID;

an interface for receiving data regarding the single dose of the prescribed medication, the data being associated with the unique package ID of the medication package; and

a database for storing the data.

24. A method for uniquely identifying a single dose of a prescribed medication for validating an administration of the single dose to a patient, the method comprising:

receiving a prescription fill request which is based on a prescription for the prescribed medication;

conforming the prescription fill request to the prescription thereby producing a filtered fill request;

causing a uniquely identifiable medication package to be produced in accordance with the filtered fill request, the medication package containing, with respect to the prescribed medication, exclusively the single dose of the prescribed medication, wherein the medication package is uniquely identifiable by a unique package ID;

receiving data regarding the single dose, the data being associated with the unique package ID of the medication package;

storing the prescription and the data, the data being stored in association with the unique package ID;

providing access to the prescription and the data, wherein the data is accessed by reference to the unique package ID, and whereby the single dose of prescribed medication is uniquely identified, for validating the administration of the single dose to the patient.

25. A computer program product for enabling a computer to uniquely identify a single dose of a prescribed medication for validating an administration of the single dose to a patient, the computer program product comprising:

software instructions for enabling the computer to perform predetermined operations; and

a computer readable medium bearing the software instructions,

the predetermined operations including the steps of;

receiving a prescription fill request which is based on a prescription for the prescribed medication;

conforming the prescription fill request to the prescription thereby producing a filtered fill request;

causing a uniquely identifiable medication package to be produced in accordance with the filtered fill request, the medication package containing, with respect to the prescribed medication, exclusively the single dose of the prescribed medication, wherein the medication package is uniquely identifiable by a unique package ID;

receiving data regarding the single dose, the data being associated with the unique package ID of the medication package;

storing the prescription and the data, the data being stored in association with the unique package ID;

providing access to the prescription and the data, wherein the data is accessed by reference to the unique package ID, and whereby the single dose of prescribed medication is uniquely identified, for validating the administration of the single dose to the patient.