CA2956271A1

CA2956271A1 - Medication dose reminder device

Info

Publication number: CA2956271A1
Application number: CA2956271A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Rafik Batroussy
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2016-08-15
Filing date: 2017-01-27
Publication date: 2018-02-15
Also published as: CA2939392A1

Abstract

A medication dosage Tracker/Reminder device attached to the exterior of a medication container or a medication outer package includes 2 components: The first component is a self-adhesive elongated rectangular strip made of paper, thin carton, vinyl or plastic that can be attached vertically, that means perpendicularly to the medication container base, through the lower surface of the strip. The upper surface of the said strip carries two imprinted longitudinal lines, one above the other, of referencing dosage time indicia so that on one longitudinal line on the strip are imprinted the 7 days of the week (Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday), in such a way that one indicium is next to the other, while on the other longitudinal line on the strip are imprinted the 4 times of the day for dosage administration (Morning Noon Evening Bedtime),in such a way that one indicium is next to the other. The second component is a thin circular Band of circular of rectangular periphery, having a diameter smaller than that of the intended medication bottle or vial on which it's to be attached, so that it can tightly fit around the intended medication bottle or vial periphery.
The said Band is used as a Selector by sliding, rolling, moving or positioning it vertically along the medication vial or bottle longitudinal core, and hence over the first component time indicia Strip attached to the said medication bottle or container, thus acting as a selector when positioned over a specific time indicium. The Band is movable and rollable to each of a plurality of selectable positions referencing dosage time indicia by gently pushing or pulling it using fingers or any other suitable means. The indicia may be inscribed to establish a highly customized schedule. Both component of the said Medication Dosage/Tracker Reminder - the Band and the dosage time indicia imprinted on the Strip - form a reminder system indicating when a next dose of medication - contained in the container to which the Medication Reminder System is attached - is due, or when the last dose was taken or used. This standardized device would be suitable for use with a large variety of curved wall and flat wall containers and medication outer packages.

Description

Description:
Field of the invention: The invention acts as a Task Tracker and Reminder, and it provides a simple and cost-effective visual representation of the patient's dosage schedule for a particular medication, namely when the last dose of the said particular medication was taken or when the next dose is due.
Description of the Background Art:
Numerous devices, methods and systems were developed to help patients adhere to their prescribed medication regimen and prevent accidental misssing or duplicating a dose, specially among the elederly suffering from memory problems or for any patient using multiple medications at different times of the day.
Some of those inventions were developed by Pharmacists while other were developed by non-Pharmacists. Cylindrical vials (for tablets and capsules dosage forms) and cynlindrical bottles (for liquid dosage forms) are the predominant dispensing containers for the said dosage forms. Other dosage forms, such as suppositories, injections and inhalers have their own packaging and dispensing containers which are usually packaged inside appropriately sized carton boxes as final and outer packages. A great similarity exists between dispensing and packaging containers available for prescription and non-prescription medications. Producing a cost-effective reliable tracker device for the great variety of containers and packages in use can fulfill the needs of a large numer of users.
Previous attempts to fulfill these needs, but in reality failed to become widely available due to major shortcomings of undue complexity and/or high cost of manufacturing, are presented below:
1- United States patent number 3,921,568 granted to William Joseph Fish on July 25,1973 "Self Adhering Medication Time Reminder" describes a six part device mountable on a medication container. Some of these parts are made of plastic and some of metal. The rigid construction of the device allows it to be mountable only on flat surfaces such as the top of a pill bottle lid where it can be damages or disclocated when the patient tries to open the lid, and might interfer with patients suffering from hand joints pain and inflammation trying to open the vial.

2- United States patent number 4,345,541 granted to Anthony-Euclid C. Villa-Real for a "Mono-Ring Rotary Medication Reminder" has 2 parts only and replaces the medication container existing cap. However, because medication containers have various shapes and sizes of openings, a wide variety of different sizes of the device has to be manufactured in order to be used efficiently on containers of different shapes; and even then, the device would not be suitable for use on a curved surface.

3- Unites States patent number 5,377,614 granted to Bradley M. Glazer on January 3, 1995 for a "Reminder Device for Pill Container" descrbes a device wih as many as nine components, making it relatively expensive and too complicated to be manufactured on a large scale. Glazer's device is attached to the container cap with metal nails or tacks. These tacks might stress the cap or even crack it during installation.

4- United State patent number 5,271,353 granted to Gerard Besthorne on December 21, 1993 describes a clock-like device which is attached to the side of the medicine container by means of a V-Notch cut into the back of the device and an elastic strap which encircles and grips the bottle. The device has eight parts and adds greatly to the overall size of the container, making it unbalanced and impractical to transport.

5- United States patent number 2,587,147 granted to Henry A. Guion and Evelyn Arnold. The device is a clock face with one hand turning on a metal stud or axle.
This simple device has three parts but no obvious means of attachement to the container. In addition, the device is made of rigid material and would not easily adhere to a curved surface of a medication container.

6- Canadian patent number 2210084 granted to Ronald Grant Mathieson on December 16, 2003 (Lapsed July 8, 2008) "A Medication Reminder Device"
includes a hub made of paper or similar flexible material that attaches to the curved wall of a medication container, and an annular dial made of paper, or other such flexible material, that is pinned between an unfixed part of the hub and the container but is otherwise free to rotate about the hub. The dial includes interval segments, such as time of day, and the hub includes a co-operating pointer for indicating the interval segment selected. The dial stands away from the curved surface on each side, allowing a patient to rotate the dial about the hub to indicate the time at which the last dose of medication was taken or the time at which the next dose of medication is due. Although the inventor claims that his device is simple and easy to manufacture, only the hub can be adhesively fixed to a medication container while the dial is free to rotate about the hub, which could make the dial, due to its surface standing away from the curved surface of the hub, prone to dislocation and detachement and hence the loss of the functionality of the device. In addition, the size of the device might overlap with the prescription label attached to the medication container, putting the patient at risk of not reading the copmplete use instruction indicated on the prescription label.

7- Canadian patent application number 2476087 by Harry Giewercer filed on August 12, 2004 and opened to public March 5, 2005 describing a medication dosage reminder device operating on the exterior of a medication container includes a selector member retentively engaged with an attached cooperating support member. The selector is engageably movable to each of a plurality of selectable positions referencing dosage time indicia, and where the selector and the scheduled dosage time period form a reminder indicating when a next dose is due or when the last dose was taken. The major drawback of this device is its bulkiness and the potential of hindering the prescription label as it adheres to the whole circumference of the round medication container. In addition, its formed of more than one part which might makes its manufaturing process complex and impractical.
Description of the Invention:
(Note: Measures stated hereunder are not absolute and can be changed according to the manufacturing process requirements or as per the different commercial needs for the device).
The invention is a Medication Dosage Reminder Device composed of two components. The first component is a rectangular basal strip or sticker made from flexible material such as paper, carton, vinyl or Plastic. This basal strip is rectangular in shape, measuring 2 inch long and 0.5 inch wide. The basal strip is self-adhesive on the lower surface while non-adhesive on the upper surface.
The self-adhesive lower surface is to be applied to the medication container vertically (meaning perpendicular to the horizontal base of the medication container), while the upper non-adhesive surface carries 2 lines of imprinted referencing dosage time indicia. The first line - whether upper or lower to the other line - has seven indicia imprinted on it indicating the days of the week for medication administration in a format like "Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday", "M T W Th F Sa Su", "MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT SUN" "or similar arrangements, in such a way that each indicium is separated from the one next to it by a vertical line or without any separation of any kind. The second line -above or below the first one - has imprinted indicia indicating the 4 times of the day for medication administration or use in a format like "Morning Noon Supper Bedtime" or "Morning Noon Evening Bedtime" or similar arrangements, in such a way that each indicium is separated from the one next to it by a vertical line or without any separation of any kind.
The second component comprises of a circular Band made of Rubber or any other similarly stretchable material, either transparent or not, that can be tightened around the periphery of the medication container, yet can be moved, slided or rolled upwards and downwards the said medication container outer core. In case the band is made of Rubber, it shall have a diameter smaller than that of the medication container. The Rubber material and the smaller diameter both offer the tightening feature necessary to keep the band attached to the medication container. The band can be rolled vertically over the self-adhesive strip (first component) carrying the imprinted time indicia, and around the whole periphery of the medication container as well, using the fingers or any suitable means, therefore allowing the user of the medication vial to position the Band over the strip in such a way as to select the appropriate dosage timing indicated by the selected indicium on the strip, in order to indicate the time of the last dose of medication ingested or used, or the time of the next dose of medication to be ingested or used.
Functionality: The device serves the goal of being a simple way to remind the patient about the time the patient took the previous medication dose, or the time the patient should take the next medicaction dose. The said goal can help the patient avoid confusion related to medication intake and use, like accidental duplication of a certain medication dose due to mistakenly thinking that the said certain dose was not taken, or not taking a certain dose due to mistakenly thinking that the said certain dose was already taken.
For a medication used Once Daily only, the patient would use the seven indicia indicating the seven days of the week for medication administration "Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday".
For a medication used twice, three times or four times daily, the patient would use the time indicia indicating the 4 times of the day for medication administration "Morning Noon Supper Bedtime".
When the device is used as a reminder for the previous dose of medication intake or use, and upon the patient intaking or using a specific dose at a specific time, the patient can reposition and roll the Band over the Strip attached to the medication container to show the indicium corresponding to the day of the week or the time of the day when the said previous dose was administered. When the time comes for the next dose, and by checking the device previously selected indicium, the patient is sure that the said previous dose was intaken or used and that it is the right time to administer the next dose based on teh Physician or Pharmacist's instruction. Upon administering the next dose, the patient can reposition and roll the Band over the Strip attached to the medication container to show the indicium indicating the time the said next dose was administered.
When the device is used as a reminder for the next dose of medication intake or use, and upon the patient intaking or using a specific dose at a specific time, the patient can reposition and roll the Band over the Strip attached to the medication container to show the indicium corresponding to the day of the week or the time of the day when the next dose should be administered. When the time comes for the next dose, and by checking the device previously selected indicium, the patient is sure that the time is right to administer or use the said next dose, and then upon administering the said next dose, the patient can reposition the Strip attached to the medication container to show the indicium indicating the time the following dose should be administered.
A gentle push or pull using fingers or any means of choice can reposition the Band over the Strip attached to the medication container from its first selected Strip indicium to select a second Strip indicium whenever the patient administer or use a specific dose of medication.
The simplicity of the device structure allows the device to be attached to all kinds of medication containers: curved or flat surface containers; containing solid, liquid or semi-liquid pharmaceutical dosage forms; and on prescription or non prescription product containers and outer packages as well.
The Device might be used for non-pharmaceutical purposes as well as a Tracker and Reminder for any occasional or regularly repeated task.
Variants: Some variants of this Medication Tracker/Reminder Device can exist.
These could include but not limited to: One variant can replace the Band with any structure that can be attached to the Strip itself instead of rolling around the core of the medication container. Another variant of the Band might include a window structure that enframe the selected indicium on the Strip attached to the medication container.

Claims

Claims :
THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE PROPERTY OR
PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1- A medication reminder device to be attached to a medication container or to any curved or flat surface, comprising of two components: the first one is a rectangular sheet or strip made of flexible material such as paper, vinyl or plastic, whereas the lower surface of the said strip is self adhesive to a surface such as medication container, outer carton package or any curved or flat surface. The said strip carries time indicia imprinted on the upper surface of the said strip.
The second component of the said device is a circular Band made of Rubber, plastic or any other similarly flexible material, either transparent or not, that can be tightened around the periphery of the medication container, yet can slide, roll or move upwards and downwards the said medication container using finger(s) or any object of choice

2- A medication reminder device according to claim 1 wherein the said Strip is rectangular in shape and is formed of 2 longitudinal length sides each measuring approximately 2 inch and 2 lateral width sides each measuring approximately 0.5 inch, therefore allows the said strip to be attached to a small medication container without overlapping with the prescription label.

3- A medication reminder device according to claim 1 wherein the said circular Band has a non-stressed diameter less than the diameter of the medication container to which the said Strip is attached.

4- A medication reminder device according to claim 2 wherein the lower surface is self adhesive and carries a thin layer of glue, adhesive or fixative and can be attached to any curved or flat surface including the outer surface of medication container or the outer surface of a medication package; whereas the upper surface of the said strip is non-adhesive.

5- A medication reminder device according to claim 1 wherein on the upper surface of the said strip are imprinted two time indicia lines, one above the other.
The first time indicia line is showing the 7 days of the week, namely "Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday" or "Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun" or similar indicia combinations. The indicia are imprinted one next to the other on the Strip, separated by either vertical lines , or each imprinted in an imprinted frame, or without any separation or imprinted frames of any kind. The second time india line is showing the 4 times of the day for medication administration or use, namely "Morning Noon Supper Bedtime" or "Morning Noon Evening Bedtime" or similar arrangements, in such a way that each indicium is separated from the one next to it by a vertical line, or each imprinted in an imprinted frame, or without any separation of any kind.

6- A medication reminder device according to claim 3 wherein the said Band is slidable, rollable or movable over the said Strip, and along and around the whole core of the medication container, whereas the Band is perpendicular to the longitudinal sides of the Strip and perpendicular to the logitudinal sides of the said two time indicia lines imprinted on the said Strip.

7- A medication reminder device according to claim 6 wherein the said Band, by being slidable, rollable or movable over and along the said Strip longitudinal length side, allows the said Band to act as a Selector of a specific chosen time indicium on the said strip when the Band is positioned over the said chosen time indicium, to indicate the timing of the previous medication dose or to indicate the timing of the next medication dose, by by means of gently pushing or pulling the said Band with finger(s) or using any object of choice.

8- A medication reminder device according to claim 3 wherein the tightness feature offered by the non-stressed diameter of the said Band being less than the diameter of the medication container to which the said time indicia Strip is attached, will limit accidental dislocation of the said Band from its selected location on the time indicia Strip showing the selected indicium of the timing of the previous or next medication dose.

9- A medication reminder device according to claim 1 serves the goal of being a simple way to remind the patient about the time the patient took the previous medication dose, or the time the patient should take the next medicaction dose.
The said goal can help the patient avoid confusion related to medication intake and use, like accidental duplication of medication dose or not taking a certain dose due to mistakenly thinking that the dose was already taken.

10- A medication reminder device according to claim 1 whereas the device structure allows the device to be attached to all kinds of medication containers surfaces: round or flat, containing solid, liquid or semi-liquid pharmaceutical dosage forms, and on prescription or non prescription product containers as well.

11- A medication reminder device according to claim 9 whereas when the medication contained in the said medication container is to be used only Once daily, the patient using the said medication would use only the time indicia line showing the 7 days of the week.

12- A medication reminder device according to claim 9 whereas when the medication contained in the said medication container is to be used two, three, or four times daily, the patient using the said medication would use only the time indicia line showing the 4 times of the day for medication intake or use.

13- A medication reminder device according to claim 9 whereas when the device is used as a reminder for the previous dose of medication intake or use, and upon the patient intaking or using a specific dose at a specific time, the patient would position, slide, roll or move the said Band over the said time indicia Strip to indicate or select the indicium corresponding to the day of the week (if the medication is used Once daily only), or the time of the day (if the medication is used 2,3 or 4 times daily) when that said last dose was administered. When the time comes for the next dose as per the instruction given by the Pharmacy or the Physician, and by checking the device's previously selected indicium, the patient is sure that the previous dose was intaken and that it is the right time to administer the next one. The above mentioned process would be repeated with the intake or use of every medication dose.

14- A medication reminder device according to claim 9 whereas when the device is used as a reminder for the next dose of medication intake or use, and upon the patient intaking or using a specific dose at a specific time, the patient would position, slide, roll or move the said Band over the said time indicia Strip to indicate or select the indicium corresponding to the day of the week (if the medication is used Once daily only), or the time of the day (if the medication is used 2,3 or 4 times daily) when the said next dose should be administered as per the instruction given by the Physician or the Pharmacist. When the time comes for the next dose, and by checking the device's previously selected indicium, the patient is sure that it is the right time to administer the next one. The above mentioned process would be repeated with the intake or use of every medication dose.