Design of a New Medicines Management System Aligned with Patients’ Requirements
摘要
The medication management system proposed in this article addresses the challenges in dispensing medical treatments for adults. The World Health Organization (WHO) considers it essential that there is free access to certain technologies that it considers assistive technologies, among which are medical dispensers. Designing dispensers for an increasingly ageing population but with a higher quality of life and desire to be self-sufficient for as long as possible forces us to continue evolving and improving these devices. Existing dispensers and prototypes focus on production efficiency rather than the needs of each user. The proposed product design aims to prioritise end-user requirements in the development process. The users’ participation in creating the prototypes revealed the desires and requirements that these users would need in the new dispenser models. The device improves its security by offering access control (preventing people with Alzheimer's from accessing it), precise dispensing for adult users, and verification of medication intake. The dispenser was designed according to the requests and requirements of end users through co-creation and brainstorming sessions and surveys of healthcare personnel. The system consists of standard functionalities like other dispensers, such as notifications for taking medication doses. The objective is to improve the user experience with these devices, creating a new user-centred prototype that generates a final design with a more empathetic, functional, and ergonomic system for end users.