Those who are on medication – whether short or long term – are aware of the dangers of missing out on taking their medication, or worse, taking multiple doses by mistake.
When their father had a health scare when he accidentally took a double dose of insulin for his diabetes, brothers Rotem and Omri ‘Bob’ Shor decided there should be an easier way to remind patients to take their medication. That inspired MediSafe Project, a free cloud-synced mobile application – in both iOS (beta) and Android versions – that not only reminds users when it’s time to take their medication, but also sends their family, friends and caretakers alerts if they miss a dose.
Launched last month, MediSafe Project (for its Android version, at least) also has a multiple profile feature that allows someone to keep track of multiple patients, for example a mother who needs to monitor medications for each child’s different medication needs.
The founders see MediSafe Project as ‘a way to lower hospitalization and mortality rates, prolong health through sustainable behavior changes, decrease long-term healthcare costs and help pharmaceutical companies understand patients’ barriers to medication compliance’.
“An American dies every nineteen minutes from skipping medication or taking meds incorrectly; the problem costs U.S. hospitals $100 billion every year,” says MediSafe Project CEO Omri ‘Bob’ Shor. “MediSafe Project combats the staggering problem of medication non-compliance using everyday technology and the power of support systems to integrate healthier behaviors into patients’ lives.” What’s also of note is its Big Data implications – collecting anonymous patient demographics, geolocation and behaviors, and other market information for pharmaceutical companies and the medical profession.
Sometimes, the simplest ideas are the ones that help save lives. The MediSafe Project looks like one of them.
