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Pillsafe

Convenience through Adherence

Executive Summary

Background

    An estimated 50% of patients do not adhere to their prescribed regimens, leading to $100 Billion annually in unnecessary hospitalizations in the US. This issue is especially pressing in the case of HIV/AIDS patients as the virus can mutate into forms which are more difficult and expensive to manage. The challenges of adherence are especially relevant in less developed parts of the world where more advanced forms of medication are not available. This project aims to address the problem of adherence through a combination of electronic sensing, wireless communications, mechanical design, and social networking. 

A Short Story: A Day in the Life of the Pillsafe User

      Our vision of the convenience the Pillsafe will offer people who use it. Enter patient Alice...

The Pillsafe Demo

   The demo for the Pillsafe with all the working features. 

Project Objective

    The Pillsafe concept combines the convenience of a multi-day pillbox with real-time notifications and data transmission. The device can record when patients dispense their medication and can transmit wirelessly to a computer server. This information can then be access by healthcare providers or even the patient in order to support the patient in becoming more adherent to their medication regimen.

    The objective for this quarter’s MAE156B team was to design a Pillsafe that could be used with polypharmaceutical (multiple drug type) regimens. The design concept incorporates a 3D printed housing, several kinds of alarms and an array of internal sensors to detect the pill dispension. The working prototype utilizes off-the-shelf gum blister packs. The team also developed  a final Pillsafe concept which could be manufactured and distributed on a large scale. Ultimately, this concept will be integrated into a patient’s electronic medical records, and blister packs will be sent out to patients’ homes in the same manner that Netflix delivers DVDs to people's mailboxes.

Concept Flow Chart

The Pillsafe system includes a device which detects pill dispension and can transmit data wirelessly to a server, where adherence information can be accessed by patients and by healthcare providers

    Part of the project will be working with pharmacists at UCSD and adapting blister pack technology to a customizable multiple pill embodiment. The other part of the project will be to design a compact, discrete, and user-friendly dispenser that is instrumented to detect when the user removes pills. The wireless component of the project was developed by a separate ECE191 electrical engineering team at UCSD.

Other Concepts Considered

    There are two concepts that were explored in the scope of this project: a multi-day Pillsafe and a single-day Pillsafe. Both concepts can have integrated wireless components. Below is a concepts of a single-day Pillsafe. Both are capable of carrying several different sizes and types of pills. By placing each pill in it's own blister, the overall shelf life of the medication is prolonged. Furthermore, requiring a patient to puncture the blister pack promotes a method of childproofing. 

Single Day Design: User would carry single day blister pack in the pillsafe's recess and use the lid to press medication out of the blister pack