Some patients cannot swallow pills, which is a problem when it comes to antibiotics as they quickly get destroyed in water. Liquid antibiotics are therefore prepared on demand at the pharmacy, while the customer is waiting. Both in terms of service to the customer and for safety reasons, it is crucial that the handling works as smoothly as possible. The Swedish pharmacy firm Apoteket saw room for improvement in this task and asked our team to examine the situation and come up with a better solution.
After thorough studies of the situation, we realized that the amount of work and time spent on this task was largely related to the spreading of medical dust. Antibiotics can create strong allergic reactions in some persons, and has to be handled with care for safety reasons. This meant taking safety measures such as building a specific room for handling antibiotics, using disposable protection products and a series of different glass cylinders for measuring at different tolerances and for different types of antibiotics. After each preparation, the room would also need to be cleaned and the gear washed.
The most efficient solution to the problem seemed to be placing a cap on the measuring cup. We came up with a clever design to provide the best functionality.
The most efficient solution to the problem seemed to be placing a cap on the measuring cup. We came up with a clever design to provide the best functionality.
The cap is angled so as to allow the pharmacist a correct position of the hand, while also securing that the water flows through the designated opening. This way, contaminated dust is not sucked back into the measuring bottle. The flat stripe running all the way from the tip of the cap to the foot of the measuring cup also has functionality - it provides the air opening enabling airflow from the medication container. After use, it also gives the measuring cup a stable way to lay on a flat surface to dry.
An aim was to reduce the amount of different products used. In the original use situation different glass cylinders were used for measuring different amounts of water. Our solution was to create a conical measuring cup that keeps the prescribed tolerances for each specified amount of water.
The product was brought to a prototype stage during the project. It was later tested and approved according to Swedish safety regulations. It is today used when preparing liquid antibiotics and provide a way to work safer and faster.
An aim was to reduce the amount of different products used. In the original use situation different glass cylinders were used for measuring different amounts of water. Our solution was to create a conical measuring cup that keeps the prescribed tolerances for each specified amount of water.
The product was brought to a prototype stage during the project. It was later tested and approved according to Swedish safety regulations. It is today used when preparing liquid antibiotics and provide a way to work safer and faster.
