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Project Overview
NPS MedicineWise identified that many Australians are hospitalised each year due to medicine mishaps that could easily be prevented. To address safer medicine use, the free MedicineList+ app for iPhone and Android was developed. This app provides individuals and carers, with a simple and easy way to manage medicines, set medicine reminders and get access to up-to-date medicine information.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Gamila MacRury
Mona Stead
Kitty Yu
Brendon Wickham
Paul Heasley
Outware Mobile - product development
Project Brief
The more medicines a person takes, the more difficult it can be to remember important information about them and the easier it is for medicines mistakes to occur. With 230,000 hospital admissions every year being medicines related*, there was a need for a simple and convenient way to help people better understand their medicines and be more in control of their health routines.
NPS MedicineWise – an independent, not-for-profit organisation committed to helping people make better decisions about their health every day – teamed up with Outware Mobile to develop the MedicineList+ app. The smartphone app allows you to record health conditions, medicines (prescription and non-prescription), measurements and medical test results for yourself and those you care for. It also allows you to set reminders and alarms in line with your health requirements, so you’ll never miss a medicine dose or forget to ask that important question at your next GP appointment.
MedicineList+ also acts as ‘health safety net’ when you travel or in medical emergencies, for example during hospital admissions when you’re asked to list all the medicines you take. Having the app means you’ll never be stuck trying to remember which medicines you use and for what, or the name of your medicines.
As we move into an era where consumers are empowered by technology and health applications are helping people be more in control of and involved in their health, we wanted to ensure people had a trustworthy and safe way to manage medicines and other health information.
Project Need
The MedicineList+ app is a free app that makes the chore of medicines management a simple and easy task, conveniently accessible on your smartphone.
The more informed people are about their medicines and how to use them correctly, the more confident they will be talking about their options with health practitioners. This in turn will help people get the most benefit from their medicines and avoid misuse. Many medicines share the same active ingredient, but have different brand names, which can lead to double ups and overdoses.
While this information can be tracked on a paper medicines list, the MedicineList+ app keeps this essential information on hand and up-to-date. Changes can be easily made anywhere, at anytime, and information can be shared with carers and health professionals with the simplicity of email and PDFs.
In a market first, MedicineList+ has created a comprehensive consumer friendly medicines database, which allows a user to enter their medicine via active ingredient, brand name, or by barcode scanning the packaging, ensuring that the confusing tasking of accurately identifying a medicine is as simple and accurate as possible. The medicines database is updated via a webservice on app open, ensuring that it is up to date and accurate.
MedicineList+ facilitates a broad range of medicines dosing schedules, ensuring that users can create a schedule that works for them, whether it is several times a day, at odd times during the week or once a month. This schedule is then translated into plain English for them.
User Experience
The MedicineList+ app was designed with usability, simplicity and usefulness in mind. The app is beautifully designed, whilst complying with iOS and Android guidelines for best practice user experience design. The app makes use of standard mobile app conventions to ensure that it is intuitive and easy to use. The features for the app have been designed with the user is mind at every step of the way.
A comprehensive and searchable database of medicines makes it quick and easy for people to add medicines to their profiles. Users can scan the barcode of the medicine, choose from a pick list or type in a free text search.
Taking advantage of the fact that most people carry their smartphone with them everywhere they go, users can set reminders in the MedicineList+ app for each of their medicines, ensuring they take their required dose in a timely manner.
The app also allows people to easily share pdfs and emails with health practitioners of what medicines they are currently taking as well as allergies and medical test results.
NPS MedicineWise has produced paper based medicines lists for many years and has heavily researched their use, drawing on this experience and further consumer testing to design and create the MedicineList+ app. Downloaded by more than 9,000 users, with great reviews on the App Store and on Google Play, the MedicineList+ app has clearly achieved its goal of being useful, convenient and easy to use.
Project Marketing
Our market research indicated that consumers using multiple medicines do not immediately recognise the impact of communicating their medicines incorrectly. They needed to be prompted to think of medicines management in a safety context, rather than in an adherence context.
This led us to a marketing strategy that revolved around promotion of the app in particular healthcare settings or as part of particular healthcare campaigns, since context is key in recognising the benefit of the app.
As NPS already has established relationships and interactions with health professionals and hospitals, we were able to leverage these to spread the message about the importance of a medicines list. Messages are therefore delivered to consumers when it’s most relevant to them e.g. when being discharged from hospital or when being prescribed multiple medicines during a GP visit.
We also leveraged our 2013 and 2014 national generic medicines campaigns, which helped consumers understand that generics are as effective as brand name medicines. Part of this campaign involved education around knowing the active ingredient in your medicine, and the app is a perfect tool to help with this.
Long term, the app supports most of the work we do at NPS MedicineWise and will be cross promoted accordingly.
Project Privacy
Privacy protection is a very important aspect of the MedicineList+ app and has been implemented in line with best practice guidelines provided by Apple and Google.
NPS MedicineWise does not store or have access to any user information entered into the MedicineList+ app. Data is stored locally on the user’s device and protected by the device’s standard security mechanisms. No user information is sent to any other application or server, and implementation follows the industry’s best practices.
The NPS MedicineWise Privacy Policy is readily available in the app, in the More screen. It is also available on the NPS MedicineWise website: http://www.nps.org.au/about-this-website/privacy.
Not For Profit
This category recognises applications developed for Not-For-Profit organisations and charities.
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