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Project Proposal
By: Kai Alton, Joe Branca, Ella Johnstad, Sylvie Mercil, Vivian Sieger and Maddy Tennant
Problem Statement - In 2015, more than 15,000 people in the United States died from opioid overdoses. A disproportionate number of people affected are homeless. Naloxone Hydrochloride is the medication used for opioid overdose reversal, however, to be effective, it must be kept between 59 and 77 degrees F. Today, there is no consistent way to distribute portable NARCAN to homeless populations with the guarantee that the medication will stay within the proper temperature range.
Executive Summary: The Opioid epidemic has grown considerably since 1999, overdose deaths have quadrupled. From 2000 to 2015 more than half a million people died from drug overdoses and an astounding 91 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose. Naloxone Hydrochloride, a counteractive opioid overdose drug, has had huge success cutting down death rates. “The police department of Quincy, Massachusetts, the first in the nation to require every officer on patrol to carry the opioid overdose antidote Naloxone HCl, reports a 95 percent success rate with the treatment. Quincy police have used Naloxone HCl 179 times, and reversed overdoses 170 times since 2010”. People experiencing homelessness disproportionately suffer from opioid overdoses, “Drug overdoses accounted for almost 17 percent of the deaths in a cohort of over 28,000 current or former homeless adults studied from 2003 to 2008. Of those overdose deaths, 81 percent involved opioids.” Today, there is no consistent way to distribute portable Naloxone HCl to people populations experiencing homelessness with the guarantee of the medication staying in the proper temperature range. Our group is focusing on creating a temperature controlled canister for people experiencing homeless in Minnesota. By doing this we can ensure that Naloxone HCl will be effective for every opioid overdose reversal it is used for, rather than distributing it outside the temperature range of 59 to 77 degrees F.
Performance Benchmarks:
- Keep the temperature within the container between 59-77 degrees Fahrenheit
- Keep the temperature within range for 1 week
- The product must be portable
- Water resistant
- Be constructed from easily acquired inexpensive materials and cheap manufacturing to decrease the end cost of the product
- Self regulating temperature
Math, Science, and Engineering Concepts
- Use of knowledge from past engineering classes
- Coding
- Bread Boarding
- Thermodynamics
- Collection, analyzation of data
Expert Input and Needs
When talking to community expert Molly Dolan, Hennipen County Public Nurse , she said there was a large need for temperature control for “NARCAN”, she gave us some potential constraints such as durability and portability. We learned about how to administer NARCAN using the needle kit. After use you are supposed to call the police and wait 2-3 min until the next dose is given. We learned that homeless people in general know about NARCAN, they even have it at Lunds & byerlys. She also provided us with a NARCAN kit that we took measurements of. It is 23 dollars for a IM kit vs. 75 dollars for an IN kit.
After sketching our first design, we met with a community expert, Luke Haun, an engineer who has been working with a company called Green Box, he has previously worked with creating containers to transport temperature sensitive medications. He looked at our sketches and we told him about materials we were thinking of using. He liked the idea of using vacuum sealed stainless steel along with the heating tape, arduino, battery combination. He then suggested we use an insulation called Pure Temp. This insulation uses the energy of phase changes of certain materials to maintain a constant temp. He also suggested we insulate the bottom of our cap. We have decided to take both of his suggestions and work with Luke to manufacture our design.
Past and Present Solutions
Medication and Insulin Refrigerator
This refrigeration case uses the latest semiconductor technology to keep your medications cool. It is sold by Global Care Market, an online shop for health care products and home care supplies .
Power Supply: Three options - Power adapter, 5v battery charger, internal rechargeable battery
Battery Life: 6-8 hours
Outer Dimension: 7.50*3.25*2.75 inches
Inside Temperature: 2-8 degrees C (35.6-46.4 degrees F)
Warranty: 10 Years
Cost: $189.99
Insulpak Insulated Medication Travel Bag
A cooler-like pack that is made for insulin. You place an ice pack in the sleeve to keep the contents cool.
Safe storage of temperature sensitive medicines
Will hold the cool for up to 30 hours
Place to hold syringes, needles, extra medicine and all other needed supplies
Comes with shoulder strap, an a 24 oz Ice Block you put in the freezer
10in wide x 7 1/2 in high x 2.5in deep
cost: $59.98
https://www.amazon.com/Insulpak-Insulated-Medication-Electronic-Display/dp/B001H8IIFI
Ember Travel Mug
The Ember Travel Mug is a portable mug for drinking hot beverages on the go.
Temperature can be set from mug or smartphone
120-145 degrees F
12 oz capacity
Two hour battery life
Cost $149.95
LifeBox 50
The Lifebox 50 is designed for a first responder to carry anything that is temperature sensitive.
It can maintain core temperature in extreme weather conditions
Can hold 8 1 liter IV solutions at the initial temperature for over 50 hours
The Lifebox is able to hold its temperature with just insulation
Has a solar powered active temperature display
Cost $469.25
https://www.buyemp.com/product/faretec-lifebox-50
CLIMA-TECH Temperature Controlled Case
Clima-Tech is designed for use by EMS professionals in extreme weather conditions. It allows them to store pharmaceuticals at a controlled temperature while in the field for up to 3 hours, using batteries. The Clima-Tech can also be recharged or active by plugging in a 12 volt cord.
Housed in a durable Pelican case
Maintains 50 degrees off ambient temperature with 1 degree of set temperature
Will cool or heat up to 3 hours on a 9.6V NiMh 5Ah battery
Battery compartment can hold a total of two batteries for extended life requirements
Automatically switches to battery power when removed from vehicle
External digital temperature display
Smart Sensor monitors temperatures both in and out of the case, simultaneously adjusting the heating/cooling profiles for best temperature regulation and battery life
12 Volt vehicle power or 110 volt with optional power supply
Cost $1,995
https://www.buyemp.com/product/clima-tech-temperature-controlled-case
Ruiyou Shock price electrically heated vacuum thermos with metal parts -
- Cost $6.50-$12.50 USD per piece
- International Product
- Made of 304 stainless steel
- Holds 1.2 liters
- Can keep hot or cold for 24 hours
- Double wall thermal insulation with a non-stick interior
- BPA free
Our Solution:
We will make a vacuum sealed container that self regulates temperature by using a circuit that heats up phase change material when it senses the temperature is below the temperature range.
Market Research
When interviewing our community expert Molly Dolan we learned a lot about the current needs for the distribution of Narcan to people experiencing homelessness in Minneapolis. Molly is a public health nurse working for hennepin county. Twice a week her and other nurses go around minneapolis handing out clean needles and Narcan to people experiencing homelessness. They have no way to ensure that the Narcan they hand out stays between the temperature range. Our product would fill this need and hennepin county would be our consumer. Currently we are sending out a survey to see if local people experiencing homeless would use our product and to see how helpful they feel the product would be.
Design Viability
- This is for people experiencing homelessness, we should make it as cheap as possible
- Since it is also designed for outdoors, and people experiencing homelessness, it should be as portable and durable as possible
- Easy to use
- Little to no room for human error
- Materials are easy to acquire
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