Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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MEDICATION IDENTIFICATION, TRACKING, AND ADHERENCE
MANAGEMENT
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority to and the benefit of patent
application number
14/800,689 titled "Medication Identification, Tracking And Adherence
Management",
filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office on 15 July 2015, which
is a
continuation-in-part application of non-provisional patent application number
14/555,560
titled "Medication Organizer Tray Apparatus", filed in the United States
Patent and
Trademark Office on 26 November 2014. The specifications of the above
referenced
patent applications are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Poor compliance with a healthcare provider or physician-prescribed
medication
regimen is a significant cause of disease related morbidity and mortality.
Poor medication
adherence is estimated to cause about 125,000 deaths and about 33% to about
69% of
medication related hospital admissions annually. The aggregate cost of
hospital
admissions related to medication non-adherence alone is estimated to be about
$100
billion per year and medication non-adherence accounts for about 10% of
overall hospital
admissions. Currently, about 50% of prescribed medications are not taken as
directed.
Noncompliance with prescribed medications leads to a deterioration of the
medical
condition, hospitalization, and irreversible loss of function, resulting in
significant human
and financial costs. A growing problem, both among young people and the
elderly, is
overuse or abuse of certain medications, for example, pain relievers and
tranquilizers.
Among the elderly, about 90% of healthcare recipients make medication errors,
resulting
in about 40% of hospital admissions for this growing segment of the American
population. Cognition also generally declines with age. Consequently, elderly
healthcare
recipients may experience difficulty in acquiring, organizing, and remembering
to take
their medications as prescribed.
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[0003] Many healthcare recipients with chronic conditions, for example,
elderly
patients on multiple medications have difficulty adhering to prescribed
therapies. Such
healthcare recipients typically consume about 2 medications to about 20
medications per
day. In general, when more medications have to be taken and the more times
each day the
healthcare recipient must use various therapies, the more likely is the
probability of
medication errors. Often, healthcare recipients have co-morbid conditions that
interfere
with their adherence to medication regimens. These conditions may include, for
example,
diabetes and associated complications such as blindness or a lack of mobility,
various
neurological conditions and dementia, arthritis and associated difficulties in
manipulating
devices, and other debilitating conditions. In addition to pills, healthcare
recipients take
other medications, for example, parenterals such as injections, inhalers, eye
drops, etc.,
and adherence to these medications is also very low. At times, healthcare
recipients do
not have access to transportation or a caregiver to collect their medications.
Moreover,
many medications are sensitive to certain environmental conditions, for
example, heat,
humidity, light, or cold. Over exposure of medications to these environmental
conditions
can reduce the potency or efficacy of the medications.
[0004] The New England Healthcare Institute (NEHI) estimates that eliminating
prescription non-adherence can save $290 billion annually by avoiding
additional visits
to a doctor, emergency room (ER) visits, hospital admissions, and additional
medications.
Studies have shown a total annual per capita savings of about $7,823 for
congestive heart
failure, about $3,908 for hypertension, about $3,757 for diabetes, and about
$1,259 for
dyslipidemia in adherent healthcare recipients. To improve adherence,
healthcare
recipients need easy access to all of their medications on a regular basis and
not have to
handle multiple pill bottles which expire at different times, and need to go
to a pharmacy
as few times as possible for their medications or refills. Various previously
proposed
devices for testing compliance of healthcare recipients with prescribed
medication
regimens are unsatisfactory in that they are relatively cumbersome, not
accurate, and do
not adequately cover extended time spans for which many prescribed dosing
regimens
must be maintained. Hence, there is a need for an improved device, for
example, a pre-
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filled medication tray that accurately and conveniently packages individual
doses of
medication, in various forms such as a liquid form or a tablet form, which are
more easily
manageable in a safe and convenient manner, can be easily dispatched to
healthcare
recipients, and which measures the compliance of healthcare recipients with
prescribed
medication regimens.
[0005] Although a pre-filled medication tray ensures that the right
medications are
loaded and that a healthcare recipient has easy access to the medications,
many healthcare
recipients are still non-adherent. For example, when a healthcare recipient
travels or is
out for a day or is on vacation, the healthcare recipient may forget to carry
his/her pre-
filled medication trays. Moreover, a health plan, pharmacy benefit manager
(PBM), or an
at risk hospital system requires healthcare recipient adherent information on
a dose by
dose basis, and not only on a monthly basis. Furthermore, there is a potential
for
tampering with the pre-filled medication tray when the pre-filled medication
tray contains
high priced medications and opioids. High priced and/or abusable medications,
for
example, pain killers, opioids, etc., are typically securely packaged in the
pre-filled
medication tray to preclude tampering and removal of the high priced and/or
abusable
medications from the pre-filled medication tray. However, these medications
can be
removed from the pre-filled medication tray by creating an incision or a cut
on front
surfaces, rear surfaces, side surfaces, and/or undersides of containers in the
pre-filled
medication tray.
[0006] Furthermore, a healthcare recipient may remove bins containing one or
more
medications from the pre-filled medication tray, when the healthcare recipient
travels,
goes out for a day, or when the medications in the bins need to be
refrigerated. When the
healthcare recipient does not have the pre-filled medication tray, has
medications placed
in a refrigerator, or has medications, for example, injections, inhalers,
patches, eye drops,
etc., that do not fit in the pre-filled medication tray, there is a need to
measure
compliance of healthcare recipients with prescribed medication regimens in
order to
ensure that the healthcare recipient consumes the right medication at the
right time and
from the right bin if the medication is stored in a bin. Typically, based on a
health plan's
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service level agreement between a healthcare recipient and a healthcare
provider, the
healthcare recipient and/or the healthcare provider may arrange for a phone
call to be
made to remind the healthcare recipient about consumption of a medication.
However,
having to place multiple phone calls at different intervals for different
healthcare
recipients is time consuming and difficult and cannot ensure compliance, if
the healthcare
recipients are unavailable to receive the phone calls. Furthermore,
conventional methods
for testing compliance of healthcare recipients with prescribed medication
regimens are
typically focused on consumption of the medications and fail to test
compliance to
auxiliary wellness activities comprising, for example, exercise, diet, health
checkups,
wound care, etc.
[0007] Conventionally, a healthcare recipient has multiple options to notify
healthcare
providers about adherence to prescribed medication regimens. For example,
notifying the
healthcare providers about a consumed medication by updating information
regarding the
consumed medication on a website, speaking to an interactive voice response
(IVR)
system via a telephonic call, calling and notifying the healthcare provider
about the
consumed medication, etc. However, these options require significant effort
from the
healthcare recipient and the healthcare providers to concur at a given time.
Another
option for notifying a healthcare provider regarding consumption of a
medication is to
send an adherence confirmation message to the healthcare provider via a video
that the
healthcare recipient records while consuming the medication. Moreover,
medications
such as pills or tablets configured with a small radio can transmit the
adherence
confirmation message to the healthcare provider when the healthcare recipient
consumes
the medication. However, the video logging solution is intrusive and
configuring each
medication with a radio is expensive. Some conventional methods provide
parenteral
devices, for example, inhalers with one dimensional (ID) codes such as
barcodes that can
be scanned for extracting information about parenteral devices, patient
details, etc.
However, the amount of information that a barcode can store is considerably
less than the
amount of information that can be stored in a quick response (QR) code, and is
not used
for securely and interactively tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare
recipient.
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[0008] Hence, there is a long felt but unresolved need for a secure, enhanced
pre-filled
medication organizer tray apparatus that increases adherence to medications
with
minimal cost and support by efficiently organizing the medications, providing
medical
information associated with the medications, providing enhanced access to the
medications, continuously monitoring medication adherence by a healthcare
recipient,
and transmitting alerts to healthcare providers and the healthcare recipient
for reducing
hospitalizations, readmissions, emergency room (ER) visits, home health
visits, nurse
support, etc. Moreover, there is a need for a pre-filled medication organizer
tray
apparatus that can be easily dispatched to healthcare recipients, and that
detects
tampering, theft, diversion, or abuse of high priced medications and opioids.
Furthermore, there is a need for a method and a wellness adherence tracking
system that
provide two-dimensional identifier codes that can store a substantial amount
of
information for tracking a healthcare recipient's wellness adherence to
medication
regimens that prescribe medication consumption and performance of auxiliary
wellness
activities. Furthermore, there is a need for a method and a wellness adherence
tracking
system that validates identifier codes and medical information contained in
the identifier
codes to provide security and privacy to a healthcare recipient.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a
simplified
form that are further disclosed in the detailed description of the invention.
This summary
is not intended to identify key or essential inventive concepts of the claimed
subject
matter, nor is it intended for determining the scope of the claimed subject
matter.
[0010] The medication organizer tray apparatus disclosed herein address the
above
stated need for increasing adherence to medications with minimal cost and
support by
efficiently organizing the medications, providing medical information
associated with the
medications, providing enhanced access to the medications, continuously
monitoring
medication adherence by a healthcare recipient, and transmitting alerts to
healthcare
providers and the healthcare recipient for reducing hospitalizations,
readmissions,
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emergency room (ER) visits, home health visits, nurse support, etc.
Furthermore the
medication organizer tray apparatus disclosed herein detects tampering, theft,
diversion,
or abuse of high priced medications and opioids. Furthermore, the medication
organizer
tray apparatus disclosed herein can be easily dispatched to healthcare
recipients. The
medication organizer tray apparatus disclosed herein comprises a support
frame, multiple
medication bins, a bin cover layer, and a conductive circuit layer. The
support frame
comprises multiple apertures positioned at predefined intervals from each
other. The
medication bins are adapted for placement into the apertures of the support
frame. The
medication bins accommodate multiple medications. The medication bins are
configured
to be removed from the support frame. The bin cover layer is removably
attached to an
upper surface of the support frame. The bin cover layer comprises multiple
customized
bin labels removably configured therewithin. The customized bin labels
comprise
medical information printed thereon and are configured to seal openings of the
medication bins. The conductive circuit layer comprises multiple conductive
lines
running along one or more of a lower surface of the bin cover layer, around
each
medication bin, and a lower surface of each medication bin. The conductive
circuit layer
electrically communicates with a receptacle base to enable detection of
removal of each
medication bin from the support frame and detection of tampering of the
medication bins,
by detecting a break in the conductive lines of the conductive circuit layer.
[0011] Also, disclosed herein are a method and a wellness adherence tracking
system
comprising a wellness adherence tracking application deployed on a healthcare
recipient's user device for tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare
recipient. The
method and the wellness adherence tracking system disclosed herein increase
adherence
to different types of medications and adherence to activities such as
exercise, wound care,
etc. The method and the wellness adherence tracking system disclosed herein
address the
above stated need for providing two-dimensional identifier codes that can
store a
substantial amount of information for tracking the healthcare recipient's
wellness
adherence to medication regimens that prescribe medication consumption and
performance of auxiliary wellness activities. The method and the wellness
adherence
tracking system disclosed herein also validate identifier codes and medical
information
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contained in the identifier codes to provide security and privacy to the
healthcare
recipient. In the method disclosed herein, an identifier code, for example, a
quick
response (QR) code is positioned on a medical implement, for example, a
medication bin
configured to store one or more medications, a parenteral device, a fitness
device, a
medical identification card, a medical wellness plan, etc., to identify the
medical
implement. The wellness adherence tracking system scans the identifier code of
the
medical implement via a graphical user interface provided by the wellness
adherence
tracking system accessible on the healthcare recipient's user device. The
wellness
adherence tracking system comprises at least one processor configured to
execute
computer program instructions for tracking wellness adherence of the
healthcare
recipient. The wellness adherence tracking system decodes and validates the
scanned
identifier code and obtains medical information associated with the medical
implement
and/or an activity, for example, administration of medications, an exercise
activity, etc.,
associated with the medical implement from the decoded and validated
identifier code,
and wellness adherence criteria.
[0012] The wellness adherence tracking system obtains the medical information
by
directly extracting the medical information from the decoded and validated
identifier
code. In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking system obtains the
medical
information by transmitting the decoded and validated identifier code to one
or more
databases via a network and retrieving the medical information and the
wellness
adherence criteria from the databases. In another embodiment, the wellness
adherence
tracking system receives the medical information and the wellness adherence
criteria
from the healthcare recipient's user device, for example, via the graphical
user interface.
The wellness adherence tracking system renders the medical information and
multiple
wellness adherence options, for example, indicators that define administration
and non-
administration of the medications, performance and non-performance of the
activity, etc.,
that are configured, in an embodiment, in accordance with the wellness
adherence criteria
on the graphical user interface. The wellness adherence tracking system
receives inputs
for one or more of the rendered wellness adherence options from the user
device. The
wellness adherence tracking system logs the received inputs in association
with the
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wellness adherence criteria in the user device and/or one or more databases to
track the
wellness adherence of the healthcare recipient.
[0013] In one or more embodiments, related systems comprise circuitry and/or
programming for effecting the methods disclosed herein; the circuitry and/or
programming can be any combination of hardware, software, and/or firmware
configured
to effect the methods disclosed herein depending upon the design choices of a
system
designer. Also, various structural elements may be employed depending on the
design
choices of the system designer.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of
the
invention, is better understood when read in conjunction with the appended
drawings. For
the purpose of illustrating the invention, exemplary constructions of the
invention are
shown in the drawings. However, the invention is not limited to the specific
methods,
structures, and components disclosed herein. The description of a method step
or a
structure or a component referenced by a numeral in a drawing is applicable to
the
description of that method step or structure or component shown by that same
numeral in
any subsequent drawing herein.
[0015] FIG. 1A exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of a medication
organizer tray
apparatus for organizing medications.
[0016] FIG. 1B exemplarily illustrates a bottom view of the medication
organizer tray
apparatus for organizing medications.
[0017] FIG. 1C exemplarily illustrates a front elevation view of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus.
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[0018] FIGS. 2A-2B exemplarily illustrate top plan views of different
embodiments of
the medication organizer tray apparatus for organizing medications.
[0019] FIG. 3 exemplarily illustrates different component layers of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus.
[0020] FIG. 4A exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of a support frame of
the
medication organizer tray apparatus.
[0021] FIG. 4B exemplarily illustrates a side elevation view of the support
frame of the
medication organizer tray apparatus, showing medication bins.
[0022] FIG. 5 exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of an embodiment of the
support
frame of the medication organizer tray apparatus.
[0023] FIG. 6 exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of an embodiment of the
support
frame of the medication organizer tray apparatus, showing medication bins of
different
shapes and sizes for accommodating medications of different types.
[0024] FIG. 7 exemplarily illustrates a coated layer of the medication
organizer tray
apparatus configured to be removably attached to an upper surface of the
support frame.
[0025] FIG. 8 exemplarily illustrates a top perspective view of a medication
bin of the
medication organizer tray apparatus for accommodating medications.
[0026] FIG. 9 exemplarily illustrates a perspective view of a medication bin
of the
medication organizer tray apparatus removed from a support frame of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus.
[0027] FIG. 10 exemplarily illustrates a side perspective view of a medication
bin of the
medication organizer tray apparatus, showing a raised bump front edge.
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[0028] FIGS. 11A-11B exemplarily illustrate different views of embodiments of
a
medication bin of the medication organizer tray apparatus, showing conductive
sensor
circuit lines.
[0029] FIG. 12 exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of an embodiment of a
medication bin of the medication organizer tray apparatus.
[0030] FIG. 13 exemplarily illustrates a perspective view of an embodiment of
the
medication bin, showing conductive sensor circuit lines running along a front
surface of
the medication bin, a rear surface of the medication bin, a lower surface of
the medication
bin, and a lower surface of a lip of the medication bin.
[0031] FIGS. 14A-14D exemplarily illustrate top plan views of different
embodiments
of a bin cover layer of the medication organizer tray apparatus, showing
customized bin
labels removably configured within the bin cover layer.
[0032] FIGS. 15A-15B exemplarily illustrate different types of identifier
codes
configured to be printed on the bin cover layer of the medication organizer
tray
apparatus.
[0033] FIG. 16A exemplarily illustrates a conductive circuit layer of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus, showing conductive lines and conductive pads.
[0034] FIG. 16B exemplarily illustrates an embodiment of the conductive
circuit layer
of the medication organizer tray apparatus, showing conductive sensor circuit
lines of
different patterns.
[0035] FIG. 16C exemplarily illustrates communication between the conductive
circuit
layer of the medication organizer tray apparatus and detection circuitry of a
receptacle
base.
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[0036] FIGS. 17A-17B exemplarily illustrate embodiments of an electronic
identification component of the medication organizer tray apparatus.
[0037] FIG. 18A exemplarily illustrates an adhesive protective paper layer
removably
attached to a lower surface of the bin cover layer of the medication organizer
tray
apparatus.
[0038] FIG. 18B exemplarily illustrates removal of the adhesive protective
paper layer
from the lower surface of the bin cover layer to allow attachment of the lower
surface of
the bin cover layer to an upper surface of a support frame.
[0039] FIGS. 19A-19D exemplarily illustrate different configurations for
organizing
medications in the medication organizer tray apparatus.
[0040] FIGS. 20A-20B exemplarily illustrate different views of a cover jacket
configured to cover and accommodate the medication organizer tray apparatus.
[0041] FIG. 20C exemplarily illustrates the medication organizer tray
apparatus
accommodated within the cover jacket.
[0042] FIGS. 21A-21B exemplarily illustrate different views showing the
medication
organizer tray apparatus inserted into a receptacle base.
[0043] FIG. 22 exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of an embodiment of a
receptacle
base accommodating the medication organizer tray apparatus.
[0044] FIG. 23 illustrates a method for organizing medications and collecting
medication adherence information.
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[0045] FIG. 24 exemplarily illustrates a side perspective view of a medication
dispensing system for filling the medication organizer tray apparatus with
medications.
[0046] FIG. 25 exemplarily illustrates communication between the medication
organizer tray apparatus inserted in a receptacle base, a backend server, and
a user device
via a network.
[0047] FIG. 26 exemplarily illustrates a screenshot of an image of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus filled with medications, displayed on a graphical
user interface
provided by a pill station manager application on a user device.
[0048] FIG. 27 illustrates a method for tracking wellness adherence of a
healthcare
recipient.
[0049] FIG. 28 exemplarily illustrates a flowchart comprising the steps
performed by a
wellness adherence tracking system for dynamically analyzing medical
information.
[0050] FIG. 29 exemplarily illustrates the wellness adherence tracking system
for
tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient.
[0051] FIG. 30 exemplarily illustrates the hardware architecture of the
wellness
adherence tracking system for tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare
recipient.
[0052] FIG. 31 exemplarily illustrates a tracker card with identifier codes
and stickers
containing multiple identifier codes that can be positioned on a medical
implement for
tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient.
[0053] FIG. 32 exemplarily illustrates a tabular representation of data size
allocation in
an identifier code.
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[0054] FIGS. 33A-33D exemplarily illustrate identifier codes positioned on
different
medical implements.
[0055] FIGS. 34A-34E exemplarily illustrate screenshots of a graphical user
interface
provided by a wellness adherence tracking application of the wellness
adherence tracking
system for tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0056] FIGS. 1A-1C exemplarily illustrate different views of a medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100 for organizing medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 1B.
The medication organizer tray apparatus 100 disclosed herein is a medication
tray, for
example, a thermoform based pill tray or a thermoform plastic tray with
sensitive
circuitry that electronically alerts healthcare providers on whether
medication bins 102
containing medications 112 are opened correctly and at the right time. As used
herein,
"healthcare provider" refers to a person or an entity, for example, a medical
practitioner,
a medical specialist, a health specialist, a physician, a doctor, a dentist, a
surgeon, a
nurse, a therapist, a nutritionist, a pharmacist, a clinical trial
professional, a clinical study
professional, a healthcare institution such as a hospital, a clinic, etc., a
health insurance
company, a health maintenance organization, a caregiver, etc., that provides
healthcare
services, for example, medical treatment, dental treatment, medications 112,
health
insurance, etc., to a healthcare recipient. Also, as used herein, "healthcare
recipient"
refers to a person or an entity, for example, a patient who receives
healthcare services
from a healthcare provider.
[0057] The medication organizer tray apparatus 100 disclosed herein supports a
polymer filling and facilitates intact shipping of the medication organizer
tray apparatus
100, and handling of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 by healthcare
recipients, for example, elderly and sick patients. The medication organizer
tray
apparatus 100 disclosed herein can be used by healthcare recipients of all
ages and can be
shipped to healthcare recipients at any location, for example, a home
location, an office
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location, assisted living facilities, nursing homes, etc. The medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 provides accurate medications 112 based on prescriptions and
provides
guaranteed medications 112 to healthcare recipients with medication
synchronization.
The medication organizer tray apparatus 100 eliminates the need for a
healthcare
recipient such as a patient or a healthcare provider such as a caregiver to
manually fill the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100.
[0058] FIG. 1A exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 for organizing medications 112. The medication organizer tray
apparatus
100 disclosed herein comprises a support frame 101, multiple medication bins
102, a bin
cover layer 104, and a conductive circuit layer 107. The support frame 101
comprises
apertures 111 configured as wells positioned at predefined intervals from each
other. FIG.
1B exemplarily illustrates an aperture 111 of the support frame 101 after
removal of a
medication bin 102 from the support frame 101. The medication bins 102
accommodate
multiple medications 112 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B. The bin cover
layer 104
is removably attached to an upper surface 101a of the support frame 101. The
bin cover
layer 104 comprises multiple customized bin labels 106 removably configured
within the
bin cover layer 104. The customized bin labels 106 are configured to seal
openings 117
of the medication bins 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 7 and FIG. 10. The
bin cover
layer 104 comprises perforations 105 positioned at predefined areas on the bin
cover
layer 104 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1A, to match perforations 110
positioned
proximal to outer edges 111a of the apertures 111 of the support frame 101 as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B. In an embodiment, electrically conductive
material,
for example, conductive ink is applied on the perforations 105, 110, etc., of
the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-
1B, for
ensuring continuity around the perforations 105, 110, etc., and connectivity
with
conductive lines 108 of the conductive circuit layer 107 around the
perforations 105, 110,
etc. The conductive circuit layer 107 comprises multiple conductive lines 108
running
along one or more of a lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 as
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 18A, around each medication bin 102, and a lower surface
102a of
each medication bin 102.
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[0059] The medication organizer tray apparatus 100 disclosed herein further
comprises
an electronic identification component 103 embedded into the support frame 101
as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1A. The electronic identification component
103 is
configured to electrically communicate with a receptacle base 2101 exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22. The electronic identification
component 103 is
further configured to identify the medication organizer tray apparatus 100,
and store and
exchange medication adherence information with the receptacle base 2101 as
disclosed in
the detailed description of FIGS. 17A-17B.
[0060] FIG. 1B exemplarily illustrates a bottom view of the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 for organizing medications 112. The medication bins 102 are
adapted for
placement in the apertures 111 of the support frame 101. The medication bins
102 are
configured in one of multiple sizes and shapes as exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 2A-2B,
FIG. 6, and FIG. 14A, for accommodating medications 112 of different types. In
an
embodiment, each medication bin 102 is configured as a removable cup or a cup
well
containing medications 112, for example, sufficient for a day's use, and is
easy to use.
The medication bin 102 is, for example, made of plastic. The medications 112
comprise,
for example, oral medications, parenterals, blister packed medications,
individual doses
of medications, pills, etc., or any combinations thereof. The parenterals
comprise, for
example, injections, insulin vials, syringes, inhalers, eye drops, etc. The
blister packed
medications have individual or multiple doses of medications 112 contained in
a form of
plastic packaging. In an embodiment, the medication bins 102 that accommodate
oral
medications 112 are of a standard size. As exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B,
a lower
surface 102a of each medication bin 102 is transparent to create a clear
optical surface for
facilitating imaging of the medications 112 accommodated in each medication
bin 102 in
the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, for example, by a camera embedded
in the
receptacle base 2101 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22, or
in a
medication dispensing system 2401 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 24.
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[0061] In an embodiment, the medication bins 102 are configured to be removed
from
the support frame 101. When the medication bins 102 are removed from the
support
frame 101, the medications 112 accommodated in the medication bins 102 are
removed
along with the medication bins 102. Healthcare recipients can remove the
medication
bins 102 from the support frame 101 and take medications 112 prescribed for a
day from
the medication bins 102. When the medication bins 102 are removed from the
support
frame 101, the customized bin labels 106 positioned on the medication bins 102
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1A, remain in contact with the medication bins
102 and
are removed along with the medication bins 102 to maintain structural
integrity of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100. In another embodiment, the medication
bins
102 are retained in the support frame 101, and the customized bin labels 106
that seal the
medication bins 102 can be removed to access the medications 112 in the
medication bins
102.
[0062] Multiple conductive lines 108 and conductive pads 109 of the conductive
circuit
layer 107 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 are exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-1B. The conductive circuit layer 107 electrically communicates with
the
receptacle base 2101 to enable detection of removal of each medication bin 102
from the
support frame 101 and detection of tampering of the medication bins 102. The
conductive
lines 108 of the conductive circuit layer 107 are configured in a multi-layer
conductive
circuit that trips when one or more medication bins 102 are removed from the
support
frame 101.
[0063] In an embodiment, the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is free
from the
support frame 101, and is configured, for example, with a thermoform bottom.
The
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is configured using existing prefilled
medication
trays, for example, with a thermoform design, plastic pill trays, or other
types of
medication trays of different shapes and sizes. In this embodiment, the bin
cover layer
104 with the customized bin labels 106 and the conductive circuit layer 107
are built as a
single unit and placed, pasted, and affixed onto the existing prefilled
medication tray.
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[0064] FIG. 1C exemplarily illustrates a front elevation view of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100. In an embodiment, the support frame 101 of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 comprises one or more depressed button heads 113,
for
example, thermoform buttons based on the size of the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100. The depressed button heads 113 attach the medication organizer
tray
apparatus 100 to the receptacle base 2101 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-
21B and
FIG. 22.
[0065] FIGS. 2A-2B exemplarily illustrate top plan views of different
embodiments of
the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 for organizing medications 112
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 1B. The medication organizer tray apparatus 100 comprises
medication
bins 102 of different sizes as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2B. As
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2B, the first row of medication bins 102 is of a large
size, while
the second row of medication bins 102 and the third row of medication bins 102
are of a
smaller size than the first row of medication bins 102. The customized bin
labels 106 of
the bin cover layer 104 are customized adhesive backed printouts comprising
medical
information printed thereon as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2B. The
medical
information printed on the customized bin labels 106 comprises, for example,
one or
more of a list of medications 112 in each medication bin 102, dosage
information, color
coding of dosage times, a time of day for administering the medications 112,
drug names,
directions to follow, name of a prescriber, date of preparation, description
of contents of
each medication bin 102, a personalized website link configured to link to a
secure online
interface comprising healthcare recipient information, a healthcare recipient
identifier,
etc. The medical information is printed on the customized bin labels 106 at a
refill
location and is configured to meet, for example, the United States
Pharmacopeia (USP)
standards. In an embodiment, the customized bin labels 106 comprise an updated
medication list with images of the medications 112 inside each medication bin
102.
FIGS. 2A-2B also show the perforations 105 of the bin cover layer 104.
[0066] FIG. 3 exemplarily illustrates different component layers 301 to 309 of
the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100. In an embodiment as exemplarily
illustrated in
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FIG. 3, the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 comprises nine component
layers
301 to 309. The first component layer 301 comprises the support frame 101, for
example,
a thermoform tray with apertures 111 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, and
medication
bins 102 placed in the apertures 111 of the support frame 101. The medication
bins 102
hold the medications 112 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B and as
disclosed in the
detailed description of FIG. 1B. The second component layer 302 is a
perforated layer
comprising perforations 110 of the support frame 101. The perforations 110 of
the
support frame 101 are positioned proximal to the outer edges 111a of the
apertures 111 of
the support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, to facilitate
removal of the
medication bins 102 from the support frame 101. The third component layer 303
is an
adhesive protective paper layer 126 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 18A-18B
and
disclosed in the detailed description of FIGS. 18A-18B. The fourth component
layer 304
represents a selectively applied adhesive 126a of the adhesive protective
paper layer 126
configured to match the surface 101d exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 18B,
surrounding
the outer edges 111a of the apertures 111 of the support frame 101 and a lip
121 of each
medication bin 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 10 and FIGS. 12-13. The
fifth
component layer 305 is the conductive circuit layer 107 comprising etched
circuitry that
electrically communicates with the receptacle base 2101 exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS.
21A-21B and FIG. 22 and disclosed in the detailed description of FIGS. 21A-21B
and
FIG. 22, for enabling detection of a break in continuity of the conductive
lines 108
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1B, when the medication bins 102 are
removed from
the support frame 101 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100.
[0067] The sixth component layer 306 is the bin cover layer 104. The bin cover
layer
104 is, for example, a paper layer or a cardboard stock layer of thick stock.
In an
embodiment, the bin cover layer 104 is composed of a coated paper that allows
conductive ink or other conductive circuitry applications to be registered in
fine line
thickness thereon. In another embodiment, the sixth component layer 306
comprises
additional information printed thereon for the healthcare recipients. In this
embodiment,
the additional information is viewable in and/or around the conductive circuit
layer 107.
When a healthcare recipient removes the medication bin 102 from the support
frame 101
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and then peels the customized bin label 106 of the bin cover layer 104
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2B, to access the medications 112, a bottom surface
106b of each
customized bin label 106 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 11A, displays the
additional
information printed thereon. This additional information comprises, for
example,
wellness information, reminders, incentives for medication adherence such as
award
points, lottery tickets, gaming information such as bingo numbers, quotes such
as
motivational and religious quotes or a quote of the day, pictures of family
members, etc.
In an embodiment, a bingo card or another game card can be supplied to a
healthcare
recipient, and as the healthcare recipient takes his/her medications 112 and
fills the bingo
card, he/she can win prizes. A healthcare recipient can read the additional
information
printed on the bottom surface 106b of the peeled customized bin label 106 when
he or
she removes and opens the medication bins 102. There is minimal to no bleeding
of Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) approved food grade ink printing on the lower
surface
104b of the bin cover layer 104. The bin cover layer 104 allows etching of
complex
circuits on the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 without short
circuiting
issues.
[0068] The customized bin labels 106 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1A and
FIGS. 2A-
2B, on the upper surface 104a of the bin cover layer 104 constitute the
seventh
component layer 307. The seventh component layer 307 comprises generic
information
comprising, for example, color coded dosage times for days of the week,
medication bins
of the day, a company name, contact details, other contact information, etc.,
printed
thereon. The eighth component layer 308 is a layer of perforations 105 on the
bin cover
layer 104 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1A, which match the perforations
110 on the
support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B. The ninth component
layer 309 is a
final layer comprising personalized printing for healthcare recipients
provided on the
upper surface 104a of the bin cover layer 104. The ninth component layer 309
represents
the printing of healthcare recipient specific medication information and other
healthcare
recipient information printed on the customized bin labels 106. The printing
of the
customized bin labels 106 is performed at one or more of multiple refill
stations. The
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is created by attaching the component
layers
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309, 308, 307, 306, 305, 304, and 303 in the arrangement order shown in FIG. 3
to the
component layers 302 and 301 in the arrangement order shown in FIG. 3.
[0069] FIG. 4A exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of the support frame
101 of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C
and
FIGS. 2A-2B. The support frame 101 is configured as a support base for
supporting the
other component layers, for example, 303, 304, 305, 306, 307, 308, and 309
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 3. The support frame 101 comprises multiple apertures 111
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, positioned at predefined intervals from
each other.
The apertures 111 of the support frame 101 are configured to house the
medication bins
102. FIG. 4A also shows the perforations 110 positioned proximal to the outer
edges
111a of the apertures 111 of the support frame 101. The perforations 110 on
the support
frame 101 are rigid and of a predefined shape to facilitate removal of the
medication bins
102 from the support frame 101 without damaging the integrity of the support
frame 101.
The perforations 110 on the support frame 101 are configured in a shape that
maintains
the integrity of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, when a majority
of the
medication bins 102 are removed from the support frame 101. The support frame
101
further comprises cut edges 114 for facilitating removal of the medication
bins 102 from
the apertures 111 of the support frame 101. Each cut edge 114 allows easy
removal of a
specific medication bin 102. In an embodiment, each of the medication bins 102
comprises a raised bump front edge 115 for facilitating easy removal of each
of the
medication bins 102 from the support frame 101. A healthcare recipient can
remove a
medication bin 102 from the support frame 101 by pulling the raised bump front
edge
115 of the medication bin 102.
[0070] As exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 4A, the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100 further comprises a receptacle 116 positioned, for example, proximal to a
lower end
101c of the support frame 101 for accommodating an electronic identification
component
103 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 17A-17B. In an embodiment, the electronic
identification component 103 is placed face down in the receptacle 116 of the
support
frame 101 and embedded into the support frame 101. The support frame 101
further
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comprises one or more depressed button heads 113 exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 1C, for
facilitating attachment and alignment of the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100 to
the receptacle base 2101 as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG.
22. FIG.
4A exemplarily illustrates an upper portion 113a of each depressed button head
113. The
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is aligned with the receptacle base
2101 via the
depressed button heads 113 of the support frame 101 to ensure that proper
electrical
contact is established between the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and
the
receptacle base 2101.
[0071] FIG. 4B exemplarily illustrates a side elevation view of the support
frame 101 of
the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS.
1A-1C and
FIGS. 2A-2B, showing medication bins 102. The support frame 101 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 4B, is configured by combining the first component layer
301 and the
second component layer 302 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 as
disclosed
in the detailed description of FIG. 3. The first component layer 301 of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 comprises the support frame 101 with the
medication bins
102 placed in the apertures 111 of the support frame 101 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG.
1B, while the second component layer 302 comprises perforations 110 of the
support
frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 3 and FIGS. 4A-4B. Each medication
bin 102 is
removed from the support frame 101 by pulling the medication bin 102 along
with
matching portions of the other component layers comprising 303, 304, 305, 306,
307,
308, and 309 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 3, in a substantially upward
direction with
respect to the support frame 101 along the perforations 110 of the support
frame 101
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 4A. Each of the detached medication bins 102
is of a
generally cup shaped configuration as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 9-13.
[0072] FIG. 5 exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of an embodiment of the
support
frame 101 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS.
1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B. FIG. 5 shows the support frame 101 housing the
medication
bins 102 in the apertures 111 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, the
perforations 110
positioned proximal to the outer edges 111a of the apertures 111 of the
support frame
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101, and the upper portion 113a of each depressed button head 113 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 1C. In this embodiment, the medication bins 102 are of the
same size
as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 5.
[0073] FIG. 6 exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of an embodiment of the
support
frame 101 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS.
1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B, showing medication bins 102 of different shapes and
sizes for
accommodating medications, for example, 112a, 112b, and 112c of different
types. In
this embodiment, the support frame 101 houses medication bins 102 of different
shapes.
The medication bins 102 are shaped to accommodate medications, for example,
pills
112a, blister packed medications 112b in the form of cards or as individual
doses,
parenterals 112c such as insulin vials, syringes, inhalers, small tubes or
containers
containing ointments, injection vials, etc. In an embodiment, the medication
bins 102 are
configured as vials. In another embodiment, the medication bins 102 are
configured as
thermoform cups.
[0074] FIG. 7 exemplarily illustrates a coated layer 701 of the medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B,
configured
to be removably attached to the upper surface 101a of the support frame 101.
The
medication bins 102 housed in the support frame 101 accommodate medications
112
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, comprising, for example, parenterals 112c
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 6, that have a significant weight. The weight of the
medications 112
can be, for example, about 50 grams. The range of the weight of the
medications 112
varies based on a type of a container used to contain the medications 112. In
such
situations, the support frame 101 requires additional support to maintain the
integrity of
the medication organizer tray apparatus 100. For accommodating medications 112
of
substantially high weight, the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is
constructed, for
example, in a sandwich board configuration that provides a stronger structure.
For such a
configuration of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, the coated layer
701, for
example, a cardboard cover is provided with openings 702 and lip sections 706
that
mirror openings 117 of the medication bins 102 and the adjacent lips 121 of
the
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medication bins 102 respectively. In an embodiment, the coated layer 701 made,
for
example, of paper is attached to the support frame 101 using an adhesive. In
another
embodiment, the coated layer 701 is attached to the support frame 101 using a
clamp (not
shown) on two sides of the support frame 101 to securely connect the coated
layer 701 to
the support frame 101 and strengthen the medication organizer tray apparatus
100. The
coated layer 701 provides additional support to the support frame 101, for
example, when
the medications 112 to be accommodated in the medication bins 102 are heavy.
The
coated layer 701 comprises coated layer alignment holes 703 that mirror tray
alignment
holes 118 in the support frame 101 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 7. The
coated layer
701 further comprises coated layer cut edges 704 and coated layer perforations
705 that
mirror the cut edges 114 and the perforations 110 of the support frame 101
respectively,
as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 7.
[0075] In an embodiment, the coated layer 701 forms a flap or a panel that
folds over
the support frame 101 and offers additional surface area for various purposes.
For
example, the coated layer 701 is configured to display supplementary
information printed
thereon, for example, patient name, patient phone number, patient address,
etc. The
supplementary information further comprises, for example, coupons,
advertisements,
incentives for medication adherence such as reward points, lottery tickets,
bingo
numbers, bingo cards, etc., status of incentives such as status of reward
points,
appointments for a week, reminders, quotes, images, wellness information,
wellness
messages, gaming information, quick reference telephone numbers of healthcare
providers such as caregivers, case workers, physicians, etc.
[0076] FIG. 8 exemplarily illustrates a top perspective view of a medication
bin 102 of
the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS.
1A-1C and
FIGS. 2A-2B, for accommodating medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
1B. As
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 8, the customized bin label 106 that seals the
medication
bin 102 can be removed by pulling a top edge 106a of the customized bin label
106 along
the perforations 105 of the bin cover layer 104. The customized bin label 106
on the
medication bin 102 is removed to access the medications 112 contained in the
medication
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bin 102. The customized bin label 106 comprises, for example, a name of a
patient, a date
for consuming the medications 112 accommodated in the medication bin 102, name
of
each of the medications 112, etc., as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 8.
[0077] FIG. 9 exemplarily illustrates a perspective view of a medication bin
102 of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C
and
FIGS. 2A-2B, removed from the support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-
7. In an embodiment, when a medication bin 102 is removed from the medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 by pulling the medication bin 102 away from the
support
frame 101 along the perforations 110 of the support frame 101 and the
perforated rims
119 of the medication bin 102, the whole medication bin 102 peels off from the
support
frame 101, intact with the customized bin label 106.
[0078] FIG. 10 exemplarily illustrates a side perspective view of a medication
bin 102
of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-1C
and FIGS. 2A-2B, showing a raised bump front edge 115. In an embodiment, each
medication bin 102 comprises a cut edge 114, a bend 120, and a raised bump
front edge
115 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 10, for facilitating removal of the
medication bin
102 from the support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B. Each
medication bin
102 comprises specific cut edges 114 apart from the perforated rims 119 which
allow
easy removal of that medication bin 102. The raised bump front edge 115 of
each
medication bin 102 is a bump or a tab that can be lifted up for facilitating
removal of the
medication bin 102 from the support frame 101. The raised bump front edge 115
that can
be folded at a bend 120 is positioned on a top edge 102b of the upper surface
102c of the
medication bin 102 to allow removal of the medication bin 102 from the support
frame
101. In an embodiment, the medication bin 102 is configured as a transparent
bottle such
that camera images can be taken of the lower surface 102a of the medication
bin 102 post
robotic or pharmacist fills of medications 112. The opening 117 of the
medication bin
102 is sealed with the customized bin label 106 as exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 8-9.
There is no adhesive 126a behind the portion of the adhesive protective paper
layer 126
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 18A, that contacts the raised bump front edge
115 of the
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medication bin 102. Upon removal of the medication bin 102 from the support
frame 101,
the portion of the adhesive protective paper layer 126 on the raised bump
front edge 115
of the medication bin 102 is easily accessible, as that portion is not glued.
The raised
bump front edge 115 of the medication bin 102 allows the medication bin 102 to
be easily
removed from the support frame 101 and reduces the need for a larger surface
area to
reduce the size and bulkiness of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100.
[0079] FIGS. 11A-11B exemplarily illustrate different views of embodiments of
a
medication bin 102 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily
illustrated
in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B, showing conductive sensor circuit lines 108a.
FIG.
11A exemplarily illustrates a front elevation view of the medication bin 102,
showing the
customized bin label 106 removed from the medication bin 102. In an
embodiment, the
customized bin label 106 is, for example, a paper label, a plastic label, or a
label made of
some other material that is glued to the medication bin 102. As exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 11A, the customized bin label 106 seals the opening 117 of the medication
bin 102.
As exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 11A, the customized bin label 106 is peeled
away to
access the medications 112 contained in the medication bin 102. Furthermore,
as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 11A, a conductive sensor circuit line 108a is
positioned on
an upper section 102d of the medication bin 102. In an embodiment, the bottom
surface
106b of each customized bin label 106 displays additional information, for
example,
wellness information, reminders, incentives for medication adherence such as
award
points, lottery tickets, gaming information, or bingo numbers, quotes such as
motivational and religious quotes or a quote of the day, pictures of family
members, etc.
[0080] FIG. 11B exemplarily illustrates a front elevation view of the
medication bin
102, showing conductive sensor circuit lines 108a running along the side
surfaces 102e
and 102f of the medication bin 102, on a lower surface 102a of the medication
bin 102,
and at the upper section 102d of the medication bin 102. To preclude tampering
of high
priced and/or abusable medications 112, for example, pain killers, opioids,
etc., contained
in the medication bin 102 by creation of incisions or cuts on the side
surfaces 102e and
102f of the medication bin 102 and on the lower surface 102a of the medication
bin 102,
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the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS.
1A-1C and
FIGS. 2A-2B, provides additional security via detection circuitry on the
medication bins
102, for example, by adding conductive sensor circuit lines 108a on an upper
section
102d of each medication bin 102, the sides surfaces 102e and 102f of the
medication bin
102, and on the lower surface 102a of the medication bin 102 as exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 11A-11B, thereby making the overall surface of the medication bin 102
completely
conductive. Any incision or a cut in any part of the medication bin 102 can be
detected as
a change in electrical properties of the medication bin 102 as measured by
sensitive
detection circuitry 1601 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 16C, of the
receptacle base 2101
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22, that is different from a
change in
electrical properties of the medication bin 102 detected while removing the
medication
bin 102 from the support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-7,
during
standard use of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100.
[0081] FIG. 12 exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of an embodiment of a
medication bin 102 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily
illustrated
in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B. As exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 12, in an
embodiment, the medication bin 102 comprises a raised bump front edge 115 on a
top
edge 102b of an upper surface 102c of the medication bin 102 for facilitating
easy
removal of the medication bin 102 from the support frame 101 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-7. In an embodiment, the raised bump front edge 115 is configured as
a bump
on the top edge 102b of the upper surface 102c of the medication bin 102, when
the
medication bin 102 is configured, for example, as a plastic cup for
facilitating peeling off
the customized bin label 106 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 8-9, from the
medication
bin 102. In an embodiment, the raised bump front edge 115 is a configured as a
slot. Each
medication bin 102 comprises perforated rims 119 at upper edges 102g of the
medication
bin 102. The perforated rims 119 attach the medication bin 102 to perforations
110
positioned proximal to the outer edges 111a of each aperture 111 of the
support frame
101 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B. The perforated rims 119 of each
medication bin
102 facilitate removal of each individual medication bin 102 or a set of
medication bins
102 for the day, or for multiple days from the support frame 101. Each
medication bin
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102 is, for example, cup shaped and comprises a lip 121 extending around a
periphery
102h of the upper surface 102c of the medication bin 102. The lip 121 of the
medication
bin 102 facilitates enhanced access to the medication bin 102 and allows easy
handling or
carrying of the medication bin 102 by healthcare recipients diagnosed with
certain
medical conditions, for example, arthritis, nerve disorders that cause
tremors, etc.
[0082] FIG. 13 exemplarily illustrates a perspective view of an embodiment of
the
medication bin 102, showing conductive sensor circuit lines 108a running along
a front
surface 102i of the medication bin 102, a rear surface 102j of the medication
bin 102, a
lower surface 102a of the medication bin 102, and a lower surface 121a of a
lip 121 of
the medication bin 102. The circuit mechanism of the conductive circuit layer
107
disclosed in the detailed description of FIGS. 16A-16C, is activated, when a
healthcare
recipient removes the medication bins 102 from the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B. The conductive
sensor
circuit lines 108a of the conductive circuit layer 107 exemplarily illustrated
in FIGS. 1A-
1B and FIGS. 16A-16C, are ruptured when the medication bins 102 are removed,
which
are sensed by the detection circuitry 1601 exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
16C, of the
receptacle base 2101 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22.
[0083] In an embodiment, multiple conductive sensor circuit lines 108a are
applied or
printed around each medication bin 102 and on the lower surface 102a of each
medication bin 102 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13, for example, via
conductive ink
printing such that any incision or a cut in the medication bin 102 can be
detected by a
break in the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a. In an embodiment, the
layering of the
conductive circuit layer 107 around the medication bin 102 is created via
conductive pad
printing around the medication bin 102. Multiple layers of conductive sensor
circuit lines
108a are created to allow one or more of the conductive sensor circuit lines
108a to cross
over another one or more of the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a without
short
circuiting the conductive circuit layer 107. The conductive ink is selectively
printed on
each medication bin 102 such that the conductive circuit layer 107 on the
lower surface
104b of the bin cover layer 104 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 18A, when
placed on top
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of the medication bins 102, makes an appropriate electrical connection with
the
medication bins 102 for enabling detection of any incision or any cut in the
medication
bins 102. For example, conductive ink is printed on the upper surface 102c of
the
medication bin 102, on the front surface 102i of the medication bin 102, on
the rear
surface 102j of the medication bin 102, and on the lower surface 102a of the
medication
bin 102 such that the conductive circuit layer 107 configured, for example, as
a
conductive paper cover can be placed on top of the medication bin 102, to
allow detection
of any incision or any cut in the medication bin 102. In an embodiment,
conductive ink is
also printed on the lower surface 121a of each lip 121 of the medication bin
102 as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13. When the bin cover layer 104 is placed on
such a
medication bin 102, the conductive lines 108 on the lower surface 104b of the
bin cover
layer 104 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 18A, connect to the conductive
sensor circuit
lines 108a on the lips 121 of the medication bin 102 to make the circuit
connection, so
that removal of the medication bin 102 can be detected on breakage of the
circuit
connection.
[0084] In an embodiment, the medication bins 102 are made of an electrically
conductive material for communicating with the receptacle base 2101 for
enabling
detection of removal of each medication bin 102 from the support frame 101
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 1A-7, and detection of tampering of the medication bins
102. The
medication bins 102 are configured, for example, as thermoform cups made of a
conductive material to make the medication bins 102 tamper proof. In this
embodiment,
electrical resistance is measured by an electronic current measuring circuit,
that is, the
detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base 2101, to detect tampering when
cuts or
incisions are made on one or more of the surfaces, for example, 102i, 102j,
102a, etc., of
the medication bin 102. The conductive material of the medication bins 102
conducts
electricity and when a small current is supplied by a power source (not
shown), which is
detected by the detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base 2101, any cuts
or any
incisions in one or more of the surfaces, for example, 102i, 102j, 102a, etc.,
of the
medication bins 102 is detected by the detection circuitry 1601 of the
receptacle base
2101 by measuring resistance in the conductive circuit layer 107 in a manner
similar to
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detection of line breaks in the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a of the
medication bins
102 as disclosed in the detailed description of FIGS. 16A-16C.
[0085] FIGS. 14A-14D exemplarily illustrate top plan views of different
embodiments
of the bin cover layer 104 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B, showing customized bin labels 106
removably configured within the bin cover layer 104. The bin cover layer 104
is
removably attached to the upper surface 101a of the support frame 101
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 1A. The customized bin labels 106 of the bin cover layer
104 seal
openings 117 of the medication bins 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 8-9
and FIG.
11A. The lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 is attached to the
upper surface
101a of the support frame 101 by removing the adhesive protective paper layer
126 from
the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 as disclosed in the detailed
description
of FIGS. 18A-18B. Adhesive used around the upper surface 101a of the support
frame
101 is stronger than the adhesive used on the surface 101d surrounding the
outer edges
111a of the apertures 111 of the support frame 101 between the medication bins
102
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 18B, for facilitating easy removal of the
medication bins
102 via the perforations 110 of the support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated
in FIG. 1B
and FIG. 4A. The bin cover layer 104 comprises perforations 105 exemplarily
illustrated
in FIG. 14C, positioned at predefined areas on the bin cover layer 104 to
match
perforations 110 positioned proximal to the outer edges 111a of the apertures
111 of the
support frame 101. In an embodiment, the bin cover layer 104 further comprises
cut
portions 122 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 14A, for accommodating the raised
bump
front edge 115 of each medication bin 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 10
and FIG. 12.
[0086] In an embodiment, the customized bin labels 106 of the bin cover layer
104
conform to chapter 681 of the US Pharmacopeia standards. Each customized bin
label
106 is, for example, a paper label sealed within or printed to the upper
surface 104a of
the bin cover layer 104 at a medication packaging location after a medication
fill. The
customized bin labels 106 comprise medication information printed according to
the
configuration of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 with color coded
days and
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times. For example, a seven day medication organizer tray apparatus 100
comprises
customized bin labels 106 comprising medication information for seven days.
The
customized bin labels 106 comprise other information such as the name of the
healthcare
recipient, names of the medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B,
FIG. 9, and
FIGS. 11A-11B, directions to be followed, name of a healthcare professional,
date of
preparation, date of administration, etc., as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS.
14A-14D.
Furthermore, the customized bin labels 106 provide individual bin labeling
with a unique
printout on the individual customized bin labels 106 displaying, for example,
a
description of the contents of each medication bin 102, a time of day for
taking the
medications 112, for example, morning, noon/day, or evening, etc., as
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 14A-14D.
[0087] In addition to the medication information, the bin cover layer 104 of
the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 further comprises an identifier code
123a and/or
123b as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 14C-14D, a healthcare recipient
picture, and
additional information comprising, for example, a personalized website link to
the
healthcare recipient's information, a user identifier (ID) of the healthcare
recipient, past
week or past month overall adherence rate or each medication adherence rate,
overall or
each medication possession ratio, bonus award points based on factors such as
how well
healthcare recipients have been adherent to the medications 112 in the
medication bins
102, etc., a list of medications 112, pharmacy and Rx number, healthcare
provider
information, instructions, etc., printed on the customized bin labels 106, or
on a separate
page, or on other surface areas of the bin cover layer 104.
[0088] FIGS. 15A-15B exemplarily illustrate different types of identifier
codes 123a
and 123b configured to be printed on the bin cover layer 104 as exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 14C-14D, of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B. The identifier code is configured, for example,
as a
quick response (QR) code 123a as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 15A, or as a
barcode
123b as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 15B. The bin cover layer 104 displays
the
identifier code 123a and/or 123b, healthcare recipient information, etc. For
example, a
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unique identifier (ID) such as a barcode 123b or a QR code 123a or a one-
dimensional
(1D) code or a two-dimensional (2D) code is printed on a packaging layer or on
the bin
cover layer 104. The identifier code 123a and/or 123b printed on the bin cover
layer 104
identifies the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and is configured to
allow
verification of the presence of each medication bin 102 and the medications
112 in each
medication bin 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, FIG. 9, and FIGS. 11A-
11B. That
is, the identifier code 123a and/or 123b stores information on the number of
medication
bins 102 assigned for the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and the
number and
type of medications 112 accommodated in each medication bin 102. The
identifier code,
for example, the QR code 123a exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 15A, is further
configured
to provide links to secure web pages with healthcare recipient information.
Information
associated with the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 comprising, for
example, a
list of medication codes, an identifier (ID) of the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100, an ID of a healthcare recipient to whom the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100
is issued, etc., is embedded in the identifier code 123a and/or 123b. A
healthcare
recipient or a healthcare provider can use, for example, a smartphone to scan
the
identifier code 123a and/or 123b and view the information embedded in the
identifier
code 123a and/or 123b.
[0089] The identifier code 123a and/or 123b enables a pill station manager
application
2504 configured as a client application executable by at least one processor
on a user
device 2503 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 25, to verify that correct
medication bins 102
of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contain the correct prescribed
medications
112. The pill station manager application 2504 can be installed on the
healthcare
recipient's user device 2901 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, and/or on the
healthcare
provider's user device 2503 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 25. The identifier
code 123a
and/or 123b is configured to be synchronized with the pill station manager
application
2504 to confirm accuracy of alerts and messages being transmitted to a
healthcare
recipient. When the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 used by a
healthcare
recipient is connected to the receptacle base 2101 exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 21A-
21B and FIG. 22, the identifier code 123a and/or 123b that is scanned, for
example, using
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the healthcare recipient's user device 2901, synchronizes with the pill
station manager
application 2504 to ensure that correct messages and alarms are delivered to
the
healthcare recipient. In an embodiment, the healthcare recipient can transmit
the scanned
identifier code 123a and/or 123b from the healthcare recipient's user device
2901 to the
pill station manager application 2504 deployed on the healthcare provider's
user device
2503 for verification of information, messages, and alarms.
[0090] The identifier code 123a and/or 123b can be read by code reader
devices, for
example, smartphones and other identification (ID) readers for identifying the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 and confirming whether the correct medications
112 are
filled in the medication bins 102 contained in the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100. In an embodiment, the bin cover layer 104 displays a human readable ID
for use in
cases when code reader devices are not available. In another embodiment,
another type of
identifier code, for example, an authentication code is embedded in the quick
response
(QR) code 123a such that only the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 will
be able to
read the QR code 123a, decipher the content, match the identifiers, open a
link, and
display the content on the healthcare recipient's user device 2901. This
authentication
code is useful when the healthcare recipient is located in an area where there
is no
network connectivity and the healthcare recipient requires a list of
medications 112 stored
in the medication organizer tray apparatus 100. In an embodiment, the
identifier code
configured, for example, as a QR code 123a links to a secure online
application for
verification of the healthcare recipient's information and the medical
information.
[0091] FIG. 16A exemplarily illustrates a conductive circuit layer 107 of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS.
2A-2B,
showing conductive lines 108 and conductive pads 109. To preclude tampering of
high
priced and/or abusable medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B,
FIG. 9, and
FIGS. 11A-11B, for example, pain killers, opioids, etc., by creation of
incisions or cuts
on the side surfaces 102e and 102f of the medication bin 102 and on the lower
surface
102a of the medication bin 102, the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
provides
additional security via detection circuitry on the lower surface 104b of the
bin cover layer
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104 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 18A. The conductive lines 108 and the
conductive
pads 109 constitute the detection circuitry or the multi-layer conductive
circuit of the
conductive circuit layer 107. The conductive lines 108 of the conductive
circuit layer 107
comprise, for example, conductive sensor circuit lines 108a, a common return
line 108b,
and a redundant circuit common return line 108c as exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 16A-
16C. The conductive pads 109 of the conductive circuit layer 107 comprise edge
conductive pads 109a, medication bin conductive pads 109b, and a redundant
conductive
pad 109c as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 16A-16C.
[0092] In an embodiment, the conductive circuit layer 107 is printed and
embedded on
the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 as exemplarily illustrated
in FIG. 18A,
and around each medication bin 102 and on the lower surface 102a of each
medication
bin 102 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13. In an embodiment, the
conductive lines 108
of the conductive circuit layer 107 running along one or more of the lower
surface 104b
of the bin cover layer 104, around each medication bin 102, and the lower
surface 102a
of each medication bin 102 are printed using one or more of multiple
conductive print
technologies to allow etching of complex electric circuits without causing
short circuit
issues. In another embodiment, the conductive circuit layer 107 is printed
using
conductive ink. In an embodiment, the conductive ink is an invisible ink. In
an
embodiment, the conductive ink is printed on each medication bin 102. In
another
embodiment, the conductive lines 108 of the conductive circuit layer 107
running along
one or more of the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104, around each
medication
bin 102, and the lower surface 102a of each medication bin 102 are created by
applying
an electrically conductive material, for example, copper on one or more of the
lower
surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104, around the medication bins 102
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 11A-11B, and the lower surface 102a of the medication
bins 102, and
removing excess of the electrically conductive material, for example, by an
etching
process or using chemicals such that only the conductive lines 108 remain. In
an
embodiment, the conductive lines 108 are color coded such that the conductive
lines 108
appear as a design element of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and
enhance
the aesthetics of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100.
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[0093] The multi-layer conductive circuit of the conductive circuit layer 107
is
configured to trip when one or more of the medication bins 102 are removed
from the
support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-7. The multi-layer
conductive
circuit comprises the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a, the conductive
connection
pads, that is, the edge conductive pads 109a, the medication bin conductive
pads 109b,
the common return lines 108b, the redundant circuit common return line 108c,
the
redundant conductive pad 109c, and additional conductive sensor circuit lines
108d and
108e exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 16B. In an embodiment, the edges 107a and
107b of
the conductive circuit layer 107 form large conductive regions as exemplarily
illustrated
in FIGS. 16A-16C.
[0094] The conductive sensor circuit lines 108a of the conductive circuit
layer 107 are
signal lines for each medication bin 102. The conductive sensor circuit lines
108a ensure
connectivity of each medication bin 102 with the conductive circuit layer 107.
Each
medication bin 102 has a closed loop circuit comprising a conductive sensor
circuit line
108a and common return lines 108b passing through the edge conductive pads
109a. The
common return lines 108b are configured for one or more medication bins 102.
The
common return lines 108b increase circuit reliability against incorrect
registration of the
conductive sensor circuit line 108a of each medication bin 102 in the
conductive circuit
layer 107. Sharing of common return lines 108b increases circuit reliability
against
incorrect registration of the conductive sensor circuit line 108a, for
example, while
printing, deposition, etc., or tearing beyond medication bin perforations 110
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 1B, FIG. 4A, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, and FIG. 9. Since each
medication bin
102 is independent from another medication bin 102 of the medication organizer
tray
apparatus 100, single or multiple line breaks in the conductive sensor circuit
lines 108a of
the conductive circuit layer 107 representing removal of single or multiple
medication
bins 102 from the support frame 101 of the medication organizer tray apparatus
100 can
be detected simultaneously.
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[0095] The edge conductive pads 109a are configured for each conductive sensor
circuit line 108a of each medication bin 102. The edge conductive pads 109a
ensure
connectivity to the detection circuitry 1601 exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
16C, of the
receptacle base 2101 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22. The
edge
conductive pads 109a electrically communicate with one or more base conductive
pads
1604 of the receptacle base 2101 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 16C, to
enable
detection of removal of each medication bin 102 from the support frame 101 and
detection of tampering of the medication bins 102. In an embodiment, the edge
conductive pads 109a are formed by depositing a larger amount of conductive
ink in
certain regions of the bin cover layer 104. The conductive sensor circuit
lines 108a are
initiated and terminated through the edge conductive pads 109a which are
larger in size
to maximize electrical connectivity in the medication organizer tray apparatus
100. In an
embodiment, the medication bin conductive pads 109b detect a medication bin
102 being
opened. The medication bin conductive pads 109b are configured as large and
wide lines
for each of the medication bins 102 and maintain their conductive integrity
even after the
perforations 105 of the bin cover layer 104 pass through the medication bin
conductive
pads 109b. The medication bin conductive pads 109b maintain conductive
integrity of
the conductive sensor circuit line 108a of each medication bin 102 when
perforations 105
positioned at predefined areas on the bin cover layer 104 cut through the
conductive
sensor circuit line 108a.
[0096] To further strengthen connectivity and protection against premature
tearing
during removal of the medication bins 102, a redundant circuit common return
line 108c
is provided in the conductive circuit layer 107. The redundant circuit common
return line
108c is positioned on a periphery 107c of the conductive circuit layer 107 and
terminates
on a different terminating edge conductive pad 109c as exemplarily illustrated
in FIGS.
16A-16C. The redundant circuit common return line 108c ensures electrical
conductivity
in the conductive circuit layer 107 if a common return line 108b of the multi-
layer
conductive circuit is compromised. All conductive circuit layers 107 can share
one
redundant circuit common return line 108c and reduce the number of overall
edge
conductive pads 109a. For example, the common return lines 108b of four day
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medication bins 102 comprising medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
1B, to be
consumed, for example, on a Monday, share a redundant circuit common return
line 108c
as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 16A-16C. The common return lines 108b for
each
day's medication bin 102 share the redundant circuit common return line 108c.
The
redundant conductive pad 109c is configured for the redundant circuit common
return
line 108c. The redundant conductive pad 109c of the redundant circuit common
return
line 108c connects to one or more of the base conductive pads 1604 of the
receptacle base
2101 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 16C.
[0097] FIG. 16B exemplarily illustrates an embodiment of the conductive
circuit layer
107 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-
1C and FIGS. 2A-2B, showing conductive sensor circuit lines 108d and 108e of
different
patterns. In an embodiment, the conductive circuit layer 107 comprises
additional
conductive sensor circuit lines 108d and 108e of different patterns for the
medication
bins 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 11A-11B. The additional conductive
sensor
circuit lines 108d and 108e are configured to communicate with the receptacle
base 2101
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22, to detect tampering of
the
medication bins 102 and the bin cover layer 104 exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-1B.
In an embodiment, the additional conductive sensor circuit lines 108d and 108e
are
configured in different shapes as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 16B, to
prevent
tampering by creation of cuts or incisions in the medication bins 102 to
remove the
medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 11A-11B. In an embodiment,
additional
redundant circuitry formed by the additional conductive sensor circuit lines
108d and
108e may be embedded on the bin cover layer 104 in case one conductive circuit
layer
107 is compromised. A second conductive sensor circuit line, for example, 108e
is
provided for additional circuit connections as a backup as exemplarily
illustrated in FIG.
16B. The conductive circuit layer 107 is configured with additional conductive
sensor
circuit lines 108d and 108e or circuit connections as backups, thereby forming
complex
patterns of conductive lines 108, for example, loops on predefined areas of
the bin cover
layer 104 that cover the openings 117 of the medication bins 102 exemplarily
illustrated
in FIG. 7, FIG. 10, FIG. 11A, and FIG. 18B. These additional conductive sensor
circuit
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lines 108d and 108e and circuit connections are provided to preclude patients
from
stealing medications 112, by creating a small incision or a cut in the
medication bin 102
and taking the medications 112 out. This configuration of the conductive
circuit layer 107
allows detection of any method of accessing the medication bins 102, for
example,
removal of the medication bins 102 from the support frame 101 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-7, and any method of tampering of the bin cover layer 104 in any
manner, for
example, by puncturing the bin cover layer 104 and removing the medications
112 from
the upper surface 102c of the medication bin 102 exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 10 and
FIGS. 12-13. This configuration of the conductive circuit layer 107 allows
detection
when a person accesses the medication bin 102 by removing the medication bin
102 from
the support frame 101 or by removing the medications 112 by puncturing the bin
cover
layer 104 at the upper surface 102c of the medication bin 102.
[0098] FIG. 16C exemplarily illustrates communication between the conductive
circuit
layer 107 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS.
1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B, and detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base
2101
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22. The conductive circuit
layer 107
is printed and embedded in the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 such
that when
one or more of the medication bins 102 containing medications 112 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 9, that are scheduled to be consumed by a healthcare
recipient in a day
are removed, the conductive circuit layer 107 is tripped. The tripped
conductive circuit
layer 107 is detected by the detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base
2101. The
conductive circuit layer 107 communicates with the receptacle base 2101 to
enable
detection of removal of each medication bin 102 from the support frame 101 and
detection of tampering of the medication bins 102. As exemplarily illustrated
in FIG.
16C, the detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base 2101 comprises a
detection
circuitry processing component 1602 and an electronic identification
processing
component 1603. The detection circuitry processing component 1602 is
configured to
communicate with the conductive circuit layer 107 of the medication organizer
tray
apparatus 100. The electronic identification processing component 1603 is
configured to
communicate with the electronic identification component 103 of the medication
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organizer tray apparatus 100. The conductive pads 109 of the conductive
circuit layer 107
comprising the edge conductive pads 109a and the redundant conductive pad 109c
positioned on the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-1B and FIG. 18B, electrically connect to connector pins 1602a that
extend
from the detection circuitry processing component 1602 of the receptacle base
2101 via
multiple base conductive pads 1604a and 1604b of the receptacle base 2101. The
electronic identification component pads 125 positioned on the lower surface
104b of the
bin cover layer 104 electrically connect to connector pins 1603a that extend
from the
electronic identification processing component 1603 of the receptacle base
2101 via base
conductive pads 1604c of the receptacle base 2101. The base conductive pads
1604
comprise base edge conductive pads 1604a, a base redundant conductive pad
1604b, and
base identification component pads 1604c. Each base edge conductive pad 1604a
is
aligned with each edge conductive pad 109a. Each base redundant conductive pad
1604b
is aligned with the redundant conductive pad 109c. Each electronic
identification
component pad 125 is aligned with each base identification component pad
1604c. These
alignments of the conductive pads 109 of the conductive circuit layer 107 with
the base
conductive pads 1604 make an electrical connection between the receptacle base
2101
and the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 as exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 16C.
[0099] In an embodiment, the detection circuitry processing component 1602 of
the
receptacle base 2101 comprises, for example, about 35 connector pins 1602a
electrically
connected to the edge conductive pads 109a of the conductive circuit layer 107
via about
35 base edge conductive pads 1604a. In an embodiment, the detection circuitry
processing component 1602 provides, for example, about 5 connector pins 1602a
and
base edge conductive pads 1604a for making electrical connections to the
medication
bins 102 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100. The conductive sensor
circuit
lines 108a running along the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104,
around each
medication bin 102, and on the lower surface 102a of each medication bin 102,
via the
edge conductive pads 109a, connect to the connector pins 1602a of the
detection circuitry
processing component 1602 via the base edge conductive pads 1604a. The
redundant
circuit common return line 108c, via the redundant conductive pad 109c of the
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conductive circuit layer 107, connects to the base redundant conductive pad
1604b of the
detection circuitry processing component 1602. The electronic identification
processing
component 1603 of the detection circuitry 1601 comprises, for example, about 4
base
identification component pads 1604c extending from the connector pins 1603a
and
configured to align with and electrically connect to connector pins 124 of the
electronic
identification component 103 via electronic identification component pads 125
of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
16C.
[0100] The conductive sensor circuit lines 108a connect to the edge conductive
pads
109a. The edge conductive pads 109a connect to the detection circuitry 1601 of
the
receptacle base 2101. Each time a medication bin 102 is opened, the conductive
sensor
circuit line 108a corresponding to that medication bin 102 is tripped, thereby
resulting in
a tripped conductive circuit layer 107 on the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100.
The detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base 2101 that is connected to
the edge
conductive pads 109a of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 senses the
tripped
conductive sensor circuit lines 108a and intact conductive sensor circuit
lines 108a of the
conductive circuit layer 107. A conductive circuit layer 107 which is broken
at times and
intact at other times indicates tampering of the medication bins 102, for
example, when a
healthcare recipient may have tried to open and close the medication bin 102,
but failed
to make a full connection of the conductive circuit layer 107 due to improper
removal
and/or insertion of the medication bin 102 from the support frame 101
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 1A-7. When a healthcare recipient inserts the medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100 in the receptacle base 2101, the edge conductive pads 109a
which are
positioned on the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 make physical
contact
with the base edge conductive pads 1604a of the detection circuitry 1601
embedded in
the receptacle base 2101. The positions of the base conductive pads 1604 match
the
positions of each of the edge conductive pads 109a, the redundant conductive
pad 109c,
and the electronic identification component pads 125. The physical contact
makes the
electrical connection for signals which connect the detection circuitry 1601
of the
receptacle base 2101 to the conductive circuit layer 107 of the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100.
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[0101] The detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base 2101 collects
information
associated with detection of a break in the conductive sensor circuit lines
108a of the
conductive circuit layer 107. The collected information comprises, for
example, a time
and a date of the break in the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a, the
medication bin 102
that is removed from the support frame 101, etc. The receptacle base 2101
transmits the
collected information to a backend server 2502 via a network 2501 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 25. The backend server 2502 receives and uses the
collected
information to monitor compliance of a healthcare recipient with a medication
regimen.
When a patient has consumed all the prescribed medications 112 contained in
the
medication bins 102 of the medication organization tray apparatus 100 based on
dose
time information stored in the electronic identification component 103, the
receptacle
base 2101 further transmits the collected medication adherence information to
the
backend server 2502 via the network 2501. In an embodiment, the detection
circuitry
1601 of the receptacle base 2101 transmits the collected information to the
electronic
identification component 103. For example, in cases when the patient using the
medication organization tray apparatus 100 has no connectivity to the backend
server
2502, for example, via the internet, a cell phone with internet connectivity,
Ethernet, etc.,
the receptacle base 2101 stores the collected medication adherence information
in the
electronic identification component 103, and the patient can remove and ship
the
electronic identification component 103, for example, to a company, a
pharmacy, or a
medical entity for checking medication adherence. The pharmacy can directly
access the
medication adherence information that is collected from the receptacle base
2101 and
stored in the electronic identification component 103.
[0102] In an embodiment, the conductive circuit layer 107 is electrically
connected to a
power source for receiving minimal power at predetermined time intervals to
enable
detection of a break in the conductive circuit layer 107, in electric
communication with
the receptacle base 2101, when one or more of the medication bins 102 are
removed from
the support frame 101. In this embodiment, when the medication bin 102 is
removed
from the support frame 101 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, the
detection
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circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base 2101 detects removal of the medication
bin 102 as
the circuit connection is broken, at predetermined time intervals. In another
embodiment,
the conductive circuit layer 107 is electrically connected to a power source
for receiving a
constant power supply of minimal magnitude to enable detection of a break in
the
conductive circuit layer 107, in communication with the receptacle base 2101,
when one
or more of the medication bins 102 are removed from the support frame 101. In
this
embodiment, the detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base 2101
dynamically detects
removal of the medication bins 102 as the circuit connection is broken, when
the
medication bins 102 are removed from the support frame 101 of the medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100.
[0103] In an embodiment, a power drop in the conductive sensor circuit lines
108a of
the conductive circuit layer 107 can be minimized, for example, reduced to
zero, except
for a predetermined time interval such as a few seconds at the time of sensing
removal of
each medication bin 102 from the support frame 101 and/or tampering of the
medication
bins 102. High power drop across the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
can heat
up the conductive circuit layer 107. In an embodiment, a break in the
conductive circuit
layer 107 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is detected, when a
small
current generating a generally small power, for example, of about 30
milliwatts (mW) is
passed through the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a and the continuity of
the
generated power along the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a is broken. In
another
embodiment, the conductive circuit layer 107 is isolated with no current
flowing through
the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a; hence no power flows across the
conductive
sensor circuit lines 108a. In this embodiment, the detection circuitry 1601 of
the
receptacle base 2101 periodically polls the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100 at
predetermined time intervals. For example, the detection circuitry 1601 of the
receptacle
base 2101 polls the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 at a polling time
of about 15
minutes. The conductive sensor circuit lines 108a of the medication organizer
tray
apparatus 100 are electrically connected at the polling time. When the
conductive sensor
circuit lines 108a are electrically connected, then a small amount of current
is passed
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through the conductive sensor circuit lines 108a to detect open and close
conductive
sensor circuit lines 108a.
[0104] FIGS. 17A-17B exemplarily illustrate embodiments of the electronic
identification component 103 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B. The electronic identification
component
103 is configured as an embedded identifier chip or an integrated circuit
chip. In an
embodiment, the electronic identification component 103 is, for example, a
security and
identifier (ID) chip or a hardwired chip embedded in the support frame 101 of
the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-
1C. The
electronic identification component 103 is, for example, an active chip or a
passive chip
or a tag and operates using one or more wired modes of communication, for
example, via
direct contact using cables or one or more wireless modes of communication,
for
example, mobile Wi-Fi (MiFi ) of Novatel Wireless, Inc., radio frequency
identification
(RFID), etc. The electronic identification component 103 configured, for
example, as an
RFID sensor or a MiFi sensor stores medication adherence information
comprising, for
example, one or more of a serial identifier that matches a healthcare
recipient identifier,
information to coordinate medical activities, network identifiers and
passwords, dosage
times, wellness instructions for providing behavioral support for ensuring
medication
adherence by a healthcare recipient, messages, calendar information,
information
associated with removal of each medication bin 102 from the support frame 101
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C, and tampering of the medication bins
102, etc.
The electronic identification component 103 also stores identifiers of
messages for the
receptacle base 2101 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22, to
play at a
specific time.
[0105] In an embodiment, the electronic identification component 103 is
installed or
embedded into the support frame 101 via a sticker 1701 that is placed on the
support
frame 101 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100. In an embodiment,
the sticker
1701 is made of plastic material. In an embodiment, a rear surface 1701a of
the sticker
1701 is a conductive surface comprising conductive lines 1704 and conductive
pads 1703
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configured to electrically connect the electronic identification component 103
to the
receptacle base 2101. In an embodiment, the conductive pads 1703 on the
sticker 1701
connect through an adhesive such as glue or other means to the electronic
identification
component pads 125 of the conductive circuit layer 107 exemplarily illustrated
in FIGS.
16A-16C, which are etched and exposed on the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100.
In an example, the electronic identification component 103 is placed on the
sticker 1701
during a manufacturing process of the electronic identification component 103,
and is
tested and programmed in a laboratory. Conductive ink is then applied on
connector pins
124 of the electronic identification component 103. Large conductive pads 1703
are
configured on the sticker 1701 to ensure appropriate alignment of the
conductive pads
1703 to the electronic identification component pads 125 of the conductive
circuit layer
107 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100. The electronic
identification
component 103 connects to the detection circuitry 1601 exemplarily illustrated
in FIG.
16C, of the receptacle base 2101 via the conductive pads 1703 of the sticker
1701 and
validates the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and healthcare recipient
information.
[0106] The electronic identification component 103 comprises, for example,
three or
four connector pins 124 that connect to the conductive pads 1703 depending on
the type
of connector pins 124. In an embodiment, the electronic identification
component 103
comprises four connector pins 124 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 17A. The
four
connector pins 124 of the electronic identification component 103 represent
connections
comprising, for example, two control lines 124a and 124c, a power line 124b,
and a
ground line 124d as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 17A. In another
embodiment, the
electronic identification component 103 comprises three connector pins 124 as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 17B. In this embodiment, the connector pins
124 of the
electronic identification component 103 represent connections comprising, for
example, a
control line 124a, a power line 124b, and a ground line 124d as exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 17B. The ground line 124d is a return line which can connect, for
example, to a
ground line of a battery or a ground line of the receptacle base 2101. The
control lines
124a and 124c are signal lines through which the electronic identification
component 103
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exchanges information comprising, for example, an identifier code 123a and/or
123b
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 15A-15B, of the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100, opening and/or closing of the conductive circuit layer 107, time of
opening and/or
closing of the conductive circuit layer 107, etc., with the receptacle base
2101. The
control lines 124a and 124c are used to program and load medication adherence
information in the electronic identification component 103. The rear surface
1701a of the
sticker 1701 comprises conductive lines 1704 that are connected to a series of
conductive
pads 125 of the electronic identification component 103 via matching
conductive pads
1703 of the sticker 1701. In an embodiment, the electronic identification
component 103
receives power from different power sources through the power line 124b. The
electronic
identification component 103 comprises basic information when placed via the
sticker
1701. In an embodiment, the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 further
comprises
placement alignment markers (not shown) that enable proper placement of the
sticker
1701 and the edge conductive pads 109a in the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100.
For example, the placement location of the sticker 1701 is printed or indented
on the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 to ensure that the sticker 1701 with
the
electronic identification component 103 is placed accurately in the receptacle
116
configured in the support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 4A, and
that a
connection has been made between the electronic identification component pads
125 and
the base identification component conductive pads 1604c of the electronic
identification
processing component 1603 of the detection circuitry 1601 of the receptacle
base 2101.
[0107] When the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is inserted in the
receptacle
base 2101, the receptacle base 2101 validates healthcare recipient
information, matches
day time, updates dosage instructions, updates messages, updates wellness
information,
updates a type of security circuitry, etc., based on the medication adherence
information
stored in the electronic identification component 103. The electronic
identification
component 103 shares the stored medication adherence information with a
healthcare
recipient to whom the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is assigned. For
example,
the healthcare recipient can connect the electronic identification component
103, for
example, to a computing device to access the stored medication adherence
information.
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In an embodiment, the electronic identification component 103 carries a
specific security
type identifier configuration. In another embodiment, the security type
identifier
configuration is downloaded from the pill station manager application 2504
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 25, when the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is
inserted in the
receptacle base 2101. The electronic identification component 103 confirms the
healthcare recipient identifier of the healthcare recipient. The electronic
identification
component 103 carries additional information to confirm that the right
healthcare
recipient is receiving the right medication organizer tray apparatus 100 for
the right week
and provides information that offers additional behavioral support and
encouragement to
the healthcare recipient to encourage the healthcare recipient to adhere to
the medications
112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, FIG. 9, and FIGS. 11A-11B, and his/her
wellness
regimen.
[0108] In an embodiment, the electronic identification component 103 comprises
a
power source 1705, for example, a battery configured to power the electronic
identification component 103. In this embodiment, the power source 1705 can be
placed
on the sticker 1701. In another embodiment, the electronic identification
component 103
receives power from a power source (not shown) of the receptacle base 2101.
The power
source of the receptacle base 2101 connects to the electronic identification
component
pads 125 in the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and powers the
electronic
identification component 103 on the medication organizer tray apparatus 100.
Once the
electronic identification component 103 receives power, the electronic
identification
component 103 is activated in a programming mode to store, for example, alarm
information, information associated with a healthcare recipient identifier,
etc. In another
embodiment, the electronic identification component 103 comprises a light
energy
collector 1702 for powering the electronic identification component 103. When
a light
source illuminates the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, the light
energy collector
1702 collects light energy from the light source which provides a primary or a
backup
power source for the electronic identification component 103. If a healthcare
recipient
inserts the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 in the receptacle base
2101 that is not
powered, the light energy collector 1702 can power up the electronic
identification
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component 103 and turn on, for example, a green light or a red light to
indicate whether a
healthcare recipient identifier of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
matches a
healthcare recipient identifier of the receptacle base 2101. In an embodiment,
the
receptacle base 2101 comprises a hardwired chip (not shown) configured to
connect to
the electronic identification component 103 positioned in the support frame
101 of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and also to power the electronic
identification
component 103. The electronic identification component 103 can then confirm
that an
identifier of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 matches an
identifier of the
receptacle base 2101 to ensure that a right healthcare recipient receives the
right
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 assigned to him/her.
[0109] The electronic identification component 103 further comprises a light
emitting
diode (not shown) which is activated when the electronic identification
component 103 is
connected to the support frame 101 and when the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100 is inserted into the receptacle base 2101. The light emitting diode
confirms that a
connection has been made between the electronic identification component 103
and the
support frame 101 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, and/or
between the
electronic identification component 103 and the receptacle base 2101 when the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is placed in the receptacle base 2101.
In an
embodiment, if the electronic identification component 103 of the medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100 is passive, then, when the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100 is
inserted into the receptacle base 2101, an indication such as a beep via a
loudspeaker
2102, a light, or a message on a display screen 2103 of the receptacle base
2101
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 21A and FIG. 22, indicates that the
connections are intact.
[0110] FIG. 18A exemplarily illustrates an adhesive protective paper layer 126
removably attached to the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C
and
FIGS. 2A-2B. The adhesive protective paper layer 126 forms the third component
layer
303 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 as exemplarily illustrated
in FIG. 3.
The adhesive protective paper layer 126 comprises an adhesive 126a that is
selectively
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applied on the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104. The adhesive
protective
paper layer 126 further comprises perforations 127 and openings 128 that
mirror the
perforations 110 and the openings 117 of the medication bins 102 respectively,
as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 18B.
[0111] FIG. 18B exemplarily illustrates removal of the adhesive protective
paper layer
126 from the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 to allow attachment
of the
lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104 to the upper surface 101a of the
support
frame 101. The adhesive protective paper layer 126 comprising the adhesive
126a is
removably attached to the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104. After
the
medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, are loaded in the
medication bins 102
of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-1C
and FIGS. 2A-2B, the adhesive protective paper layer 126 is removed from the
lower
surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104. The bin cover layer 104 having the
selectively
applied adhesive 126a exposed on the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer
104 is
then removably attached to the upper surface 101a of the support frame 101.
When the
adhesive protective paper layer 126 is removed from the lower surface 104b of
the bin
cover layer 104, the adhesive 126a of the adhesive protective paper layer 126
is left
exposed on the lower surface 104b of the bin cover layer 104. When the
adhesive
protective paper layer 126 is removed, the exposed adhesive 126a on the lower
surface
104b of the bin cover layer 104 is used to attach the lower surface 104b of
the bin cover
layer 104 to the upper surface 101a of the support frame 101. The exposed
adhesive 126a
is selectively applied on the upper surface 101a of the support frame 101 to
match an
outline of the lips 121 of the medication bins 102 and surfaces 101d
surrounding the
outer edges 111a of the apertures 111 of the support frame 101 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 1B. The adhesive 126a is not applied on the cut edges 114 of the
medication bins
102 and hence allows peeling and removal of the customized bin labels 106
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 1A, FIGS, 2A-2B, FIGS. 8-9, and FIGS. 14A-14D, from the
medication bins 102. The adhesive strength provided by the adhesive 126a of
the
adhesive protective paper layer 126 is calibrated to allow easy and clean
removal of the
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customized bin labels 106 from the medication bins 102 and for removing
medications
112 from the medication bins 102.
[0112] FIGS. 19A-19D exemplarily illustrate different configurations for
organizing
medications 112 in the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B. FIGS. 19A-19D exemplarily illustrate multiple
weekly
configurations for organizing medications 112 in the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100. The medication organizer tray apparatus 100 can be customized for holding
different
types of medications 112 and medication dosages. In an example, up to four pre-
filled
medication organizer tray apparatuses 100 a month or weekly pre-filled
medication
organizer tray apparatuses 100 are sent to a healthcare recipient as per
his/her
prescription with medical information printed on the customized bin labels 106
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1A, FIGS. 2A-2B, FIGS. 8-9, and FIGS. 14A-14D.
In an
embodiment, the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is configured to hold
a daily
dosage, a weekly dosage for 7 days, 14 days, 21 days, or 28 days, or a monthly
dosage of
medications 112.
[0113] FIG. 19A exemplarily illustrates a 4x7 medication organizer tray
apparatus 100
containing a medication dosage to be taken four times a day, each day of the
week. The
first two rows of the 4x7 medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contain
medications
112 that are to be taken at different times during the day, every day of the
week. The third
row contains medications 112 that are to be taken at noon time, every day of
the week.
The fourth row of the 4x7 medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contains
medications
112 that are to be taken in the evening, every day of the week.
[0114] FIG. 19B exemplarily illustrates a 4x7 medication organizer tray
apparatus 100
containing a medication dosage to be taken three times a day, each day of the
week. The
first row of the 4x7 medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contains
medications 112
that are to be taken in the morning, every day of the week. The second row of
the 4x7
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contains medications 112 that are to
be taken at
noon time, every day of the week. The third row of the 4x7 medication
organizer tray
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apparatus 100 contains medications 112 that are to be taken in the evening,
every day of
the week. The fourth row is not filled and is empty.
[0115] FIG. 19C exemplarily illustrates a 4x7 medication organizer tray
apparatus 100
containing a medication dosage for two weeks. The first row of the 4x7
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 contains medications 112 that are to be taken in
the
morning, every day of week 1. The second row of the 4x7 medication organizer
tray
apparatus 100 contains medications 112 that are to be taken in the evening,
every day of
week 1. The third row of the 4x7 medication organizer tray apparatus 100
contains
medications 112 that are to be taken in the morning, every day of week 2. The
fourth row
of the 4x7 medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contains medications 112
that are to
be taken in the evening, every day of week 2.
[0116] FIG. 19D exemplarily illustrates a 4x7 medication organizer tray
apparatus 100
containing a medication dosage for a month or for four weeks. The first row of
the 4x7
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contains medications 112 that are to
be taken
every day of week 1, once a day. The second row of the 4x7 medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 contains medications 112 that are to be taken every day of week
2, once a
day. The third row of the 4x7 medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contains
medications 112 that are to be taken every day of week 3, once a day. The
fourth row of
the 4x7 medication organizer tray apparatus 100 contains medications 112 that
are to be
taken every day of week 4, once a day.
[0117] FIGS. 20A-20B exemplarily illustrate different views of a cover jacket
2001
configured to cover and accommodate the medication organizer tray apparatus
100
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 20C. The cover jacket 2001 securely
accommodates the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100, thereby facilitating easy
transportation and
storage of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100. FIG. 20C exemplarily
illustrates
the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 accommodated within the cover
jacket 2001.
In an embodiment, the cover jacket 2001 is configured as a foldable jacket
comprising a
top panel 2002 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 20A-20C, and a bottom panel
2004
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exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 20B-20C. FIG. 20A exemplarily illustrates a
top plan
view of the cover jacket 2001, showing a front surface 2002a of the top panel
2002 of the
cover jacket 2001. In an embodiment, the front surface 2002a of the top panel
2002
comprises information specific to a healthcare recipient comprising, for
example,
personalized images, personalized messages, a company name, healthcare
recipient
information, etc., printed thereon as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 20A. The
top panel
2002 comprises a tab 2003 for opening the cover jacket 2001 as exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 20A-20C.
[0118] FIGS. 20B-20C exemplarily illustrate top perspective views of the cover
jacket
2001, showing the top panel 2002 and the bottom panel 2004 of the cover jacket
2001. In
an embodiment, a rear surface 2002b of the top panel 2002 comprises, for
example,
information specific to medications 112 contained in each medication bin 102
of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100, information specific to a patient to
whom the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is prescribed, incentives for
medication
adherence, status of incentives such as reward points status, the identifier
codes 123a and
123b of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, etc. In an embodiment,
the bottom
panel 2004 of the cover jacket 2001 comprises multiple slots 2005 that allow
insertion of
the medication bins 102 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 through
the slots
2005. The medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is removably attached to a
front
surface 2004a of the bottom panel 2004 and the medication bins 102 of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 are inserted through the slots 2005 of the bottom
panel
2004. When a healthcare recipient receives the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100
in the cover jacket 2001 from a pharmacy, he/she places the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 together with the cover jacket 2001 into the receptacle base
2101
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22. In an embodiment, the
cover
jacket 2001 is removed prior to placing the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100 into
the receptacle base 2101.
[0119] FIGS. 21A-21B exemplarily illustrate different views showing the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 inserted into the receptacle base 2101. FIG. 21A
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exemplarily illustrates a top perspective view of the medication organizer
tray apparatus
100 inserted into the receptacle base 2101. FIG. 21B exemplarily illustrates a
side
perspective view of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 inserted into
the
receptacle base 2101. The receptacle base 2101 is a base that holds the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 with prefilled medications 112 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 1B. In an embodiment, the receptacle base 2101 comprises a receptacle
2105, a
loudspeaker 2102, a display screen 2103 such as a liquid crystal display (LCD)
screen,
and a call button 2104. The medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is
inserted into the
receptacle 2105 of the receptacle base 2101. The receptacle base 2101 plays
personalized
audio messages such as "grandma thank you for taking your medication" or
chimes to
communicate or talk to a healthcare recipient via the loudspeaker 2102, and
displays
personalized text messages, adherence status, a clock interface that displays
time, etc., on
the display screen 2103. In an embodiment, the loudspeaker 2102 vocalizes a
serial
identifier that matches a healthcare recipient identifier. Furthermore, when
the medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 is inserted into the receptacle base 2101, the
receptacle base
2101 extracts messages and other medication adherence information from the
electronic
identification component 103 and annunciates the messages at the right dose
and alarm
time and other times as programmed via the loudspeaker 2102.
[0120] In an embodiment, the display screen 2103 displays a serial identifier
that
matches a healthcare recipient identifier. The call button 2104 of the
receptacle base 2101
allows a healthcare recipient to call or connect with a healthcare provider or
an advisor.
The healthcare provider or the advisor responds, when the call button 2104 is
pressed by
the healthcare recipient. The receptacle base 2101 further comprises adherence
indicators
2106 that are configured to indicate behavior of a healthcare recipient based
on
medication adherence. The adherence indicators 2106 change colors based on
medication
adherence of the healthcare recipient. The receptacle base 2101 further
comprises
additional buttons 2107 to allow the healthcare recipients to communicate with
the
healthcare provider or select options. The additional buttons 2107 comprise,
for example,
an "up" button 2107a, a "down" button 2107b, and a "select" button 2107c as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 21A. In an embodiment, the receptacle base
2101 allows
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connection, for example, to a computing device, for example, a cell phone, a
smartphone,
etc., via universal serial bus (USB) ports 2108. The USB ports 2108 are spaced
appropriately to hold, for example, two dongles at one time.
[0121] In an embodiment, the receptacle base 2101 comprises a lid 2109 with
sensor
bars, hereinafter referred to as "clamp bars" 2110, as exemplarily illustrated
in FIG. 21B,
for keeping the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 from flapping and
ensuring a
strong electrical connection between the medication organizer tray apparatus
100 and the
receptacle base 2101, when closed. In an embodiment, the receptacle base 2101
comprises, for example, eight clamp bars 2110. The lid 2109 with the clamp
bars 2110 is
pushed down by a healthcare recipient or a healthcare provider after placing
the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 in the receptacle base 2101, leaving
the
medication bins 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 21B, exposed through the
clamp bars
2110. In an embodiment, a diffused material 130 is deposited on a cut 129
configured on
each medication bin 102 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 21B. The diffused
material
130 indicates one or more dosage times of the medications 112 in each
medication bin
102 and/or a message specific to each medication bin 102. In an embodiment,
the
diffused material 130 configured as a blinking light on the medication bin 102
can
indicate that there is a message for that specific medication bin 102, for
example, a
message indicating medications 112 in that medication bin 102 have changed, a
message
indicating not to take the medications 112 as that dose period has expired,
specific
instructions on how to take the medications 112, etc. The diffused material
130 is
configured as a diffused light source and deposited on the raised bump front
edge 115 of
each of the medication bins 102 to light the raised bump front edge 115 of
each of the
medication bins 102 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 21B. The lit raised
bump front
edge 115 of a medication bin 102 shows the healthcare recipient which raised
bump front
edge 115 of a medication bin 102 needs to be raised and hence which medication
bin 102
needs to be opened. This lighting arrangement of the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100 assists healthcare recipients with dementia and forgetfulness who may have
difficulty
in remembering, for example, a day, a date, or a time for consuming the
medications 112
and who need to be directed to remove or open a correct medication bin 102. In
an
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embodiment, for proper adhesive application of the bin cover layer 104 on the
medication
bins 102 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS.
2A-2B, at a pharmacy, or for stacking for storage before shipment, or
transport of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100, the medication bins 102 are
configured without
the raised bump front edges 115. In this embodiment, the raised bump front
edges 115 of
the medication bins 102 are raised at the time of inserting the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 into the receptacle base 2101.
[0122] FIG. 22 exemplarily illustrates a top plan view of an embodiment of the
receptacle base 2101 accommodating the medication organizer tray apparatus
100. The
receptacle base 2101 disclosed herein comprises a loudspeaker 2102, a display
screen
2103 such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen, and a call button 2104.
The receptacle
base 2101 plays audio messages via the loudspeaker 2102 and displays text
messages and
an adherence status on the display screen 2103. The call button 2104 of the
receptacle
base 2101 allows a healthcare recipient to call a healthcare provider. The
receptacle base
2101 further comprises additional buttons, for example, an "up" button 2107a
and a
"down" button 2107b to allow the healthcare recipients to select options.
[0123] FIG. 23 illustrates a method for organizing medications 112 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 1B, FIG. 9, and FIGS. 11A-11B, and collecting medication
adherence
information. The method disclosed herein comprises assembling 2301 the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 comprising the support frame 101 with multiple
apertures
111 positioned at predefined intervals from each other, multiple medication
bins 102, the
bin cover layer 104 with multiple customized bin labels 106, and the
conductive circuit
layer 107 as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and as disclosed in the
detailed
description of FIGS. 1A-1C. The medication bins 102 are placed 2301a in the
apertures
111 of the support frame 101 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B. The
medication bins 102
accommodate multiple medications 112. In an embodiment, a medication
dispensing
system 2401 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 24, captures an image of an upper
surface
101a and a lower surface 101b of the support frame 101 of the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1B, after filling of the
medication
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organizer tray apparatus 100 with the medications 112. The images are captured
before
attaching the bin cover layer 104 to the upper surface 101a of the support
frame 101 as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 18B. The conductive circuit layer 107
comprising multiple
conductive lines 108 running along one or more of the lower surface 104b of
the bin
cover layer 104, around each medication bin 102, and the lower surface 102a of
each
medication bin 102 is created 2301b. The customized bin labels 106 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 1A, FIGS. 2A-2B, FIGS. 8-9, and FIGS. 14A-14D, are
removably
configured 2301c within the bin cover layer 104 to match openings 117 of the
medication
bins 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 7, FIG. 10, and FIG. 18B. The
customized bin
labels 106 comprise medical information printed thereon. The bin cover layer
104 is
removably attached 2301d to the upper surface 101a of the support frame 101.
The
customized bin labels 106 of the bin cover layer 104 affixed to the upper
surface 101a of
the support frame 101 seals the openings 117 of the medication bins 102.
[0124] The assembled medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is positioned
2302 on
the receptacle base 2101 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22,
to allow
electrical communication of the conductive circuit layer 107 of the assembled
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 with the detection circuitry 1601 of the
receptacle base 2101
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 16C. Removal of each medication bin 102 from
the
support frame 101 and tampering of the medication bins 102 are detected 2303
via the
electrical communication between the conductive circuit layer 107 of the
assembled
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and the detection circuitry 1601 of
the receptacle
base 2101. In an embodiment, a power source (not shown) is electrically
connected to the
conductive circuit layer 107 of the assembled medication organizer tray
apparatus 100. In
an embodiment, the power source supplies minimal power at predetermined time
intervals to the conductive circuit layer 107 to enable detection of a break
in the
conductive circuit layer 107 that is in electric communication with the
receptacle base
2101, when one or more of the medication bins 102 are removed from the support
frame
101. In another embodiment, the power source supplies a constant power supply
of a
minimal magnitude to the conductive circuit layer 107 to enable detection of a
break in
the conductive circuit layer 107 that is in electric communication with the
receptacle base
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2101, when one or more of the medication bins 102 are removed from the support
frame
101.
[0125] The assembled medication organizer tray apparatus 100 collects and
transmits
2304 medication adherence information associated with the removal of each
medication
bin 102 from the support frame 101 and the tampering of the medication bins
102, to the
receptacle base 2101 via the conductive circuit layer 107. The medication
adherence
information indicates, for example, which of the medication bins 102 is
removed from
the support frame 101 for ensuring medication adherence by a healthcare
recipient and
verifying the presence of medications 112 in each medication bin 102. The
electronic
identification component 103 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 17A-17B, is
embedded
into the support frame 101 during assembly of the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100. The electronic identification component 103 is configured to electrically
communicate with the receptacle base 2101. The electronic identification
component 103
identifies the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 for verifying the
presence of
medications 112 in each medication bin 102, and stores and exchanges the
medication
adherence information with the receptacle base 2101.
[0126] FIG. 24 exemplarily illustrates a side perspective view of a medication
dispensing system 2401 for filling the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
with
medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B. Multiple medication bins
102 of
different shapes or sizes accommodate medications 112 of different types, for
example,
parenterals 112c, oral medications, blister packed medications 112b
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 6, etc., in the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 as
disclosed in
the detailed description of FIGS. 1A-1C and FIG. 6. In an embodiment, up to
eight
medication organizer tray apparatuses 100 can be placed in the medication
dispensing
system 2401. The medication dispensing system 2401 fills medications 112 into
the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 using a manual dispenser or a robotic
dispenser
2402 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 24. In an embodiment, the medication
dispensing
system 2401 captures an image of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
after the
filling process is complete. Once the filling is complete, each medication
organizer tray
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apparatus 100 is manually removed, checked, and sealed with the bin cover
layer 104
configured with the customized bin labels 106 exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
1A, FIGS.
2A-2B, FIGS. 8-9, and FIGS. 14A-14D, and the other component layers, for
example,
303, 304, 305, 307, 308, 309, etc., exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 3, of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 by a pharmacist or a pharmacy technician.
[0127] FIG. 25 exemplarily illustrates communication between the medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 inserted in the receptacle base 2101, and a
backend server
2502 and a user device 2503 via a network 2501. The user device 2503 is an
electronic
device, for example, a personal computer, a tablet computing device, a mobile
computer,
a mobile phone, a smartphone, a portable computing device, a laptop, a touch
centric
device, a workstation, a portable electronic device, a network enabled
computing device,
an interactive network enabled communication device, any other suitable
computing
equipment, combinations of multiple pieces of computing equipment, etc.
Computing
equipment, for example, one or more servers may be associated with one or more
online
services. The network 2501 is, for example, the internet, an intranet, a wired
network, a
wireless network, a communication network that implements Bluetooth of
Bluetooth
Sig, Inc., a network that implements Wi-Fi of Wi-Fi Alliance Corporation, an
ultra-
wideband communication network (UWB), a wireless universal serial bus (USB)
communication network, a communication network that implements ZigBee of
ZigBee
Alliance Corporation, a general packet radio service (GPRS) network, a mobile
telecommunication network such as a global system for mobile (GSM)
communications
network, a code division multiple access (CDMA) network, a third generation
(3G)
mobile communication network, a fourth generation (4G) mobile communication
network, a long-term evolution (LTE) mobile communication network, a public
telephone network, etc., a local area network, a wide area network, an
internet connection
network, an infrared communication network, etc., or a network formed from any
combination of these networks.
[0128] The conductive circuit layer 107 of the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100
sends sensor signals that comprise medication adherence information to the
detection
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circuitry 1601 of the receptacle base 2101 as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS.
16A-16C
and as disclosed in the detailed description of FIGS. 16A-16C. The receptacle
base 2101
then transmits the medication adherence information to the backend server 2502
via the
network 2501. The backend server 2502 processes the medication adherence
information
and transmits the processed medication adherence information to the user
device 2503 via
the network 2501. In an embodiment, the backend server 2502 is implemented in
a cloud
computing environment. As used herein, "cloud computing environment" refers to
a
processing environment comprising configurable computing physical and logical
resources, for example, networks, servers, storage, applications, services,
etc., and data
distributed over the network 2501, for example, the internet. The cloud
computing
environment provides on-demand network access to a shared pool of the
configurable
computing physical and logical resources. The backend server 2502 is a cloud
computing
based platform implemented as a service for receiving medication adherence
information
collected from the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and transmitting
the received
medication adherence information to the user device 2503 via the network 2501.
The
backend server 2502 is a cloud computing web based server developed, for
example,
using Microsoft .NET, the Oracle database server, etc. In an embodiment, the
backend
server 2502 is hosted in a cloud computing environment, for example, at a
customer
premise, a company premise, a remote hosting center, etc.
[0129] The pill station manager application 2504 downloadable and executable
on the
user device 2503 displays the medication adherence information received from
the
backend server 2502 to a user via a graphical user interface (GUI) 2601
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 26, provided by the pill station manager application 2504.
A user, for
example, a healthcare provider can view the medication adherence information
on the
GUI 2601 of the user device 2503. The user device 2503 comprises a non-
transitory
computer readable storage medium, for example, a memory unit (not shown)
configured
to store computer program instructions defined by the pill station manager
application
2504. As used herein, "non-transitory computer readable storage medium" refers
to all
computer readable media, for example, non-volatile media such as optical discs
or
magnetic disks, volatile media such as a register memory, a processor cache,
etc., and
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transmission media such as wires that constitute a system bus coupled to the
processor,
except for a transitory, propagating signal. The user device 2503 further
comprises at
least one processor (not shown) communicatively coupled to the non-transitory
computer
readable storage medium for executing the defined computer program
instructions. The
backend server 2502 transmits actionable information, for example, about the
medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, wellness information,
loyalty
program information, surveys, etc., to a user device 2901 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG.
29, of a healthcare recipient who is using the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100, via
the network 2501.
[0130] FIG. 26 exemplarily illustrates a screenshot of an image of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS.
2A-2B,
filled with medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, displayed on
the graphical
user interface (GUI) 2601 provided by the pill station manager application
2504 on a user
device 2503 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 25. The pill station manager
application 2504
stores images of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 in a memory unit
(not
shown) of the user device 2503. At a pharmacy, when the medication organizer
tray
apparatus 100 is filled with medications 112, an image of the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 can be captured from different angles, for example, from the
upper surface
101a and the lower surface 101b of the support frame 101 of the medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1B, before placing the
bin cover
layer 104 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1A and FIGS. 2A-2B, on the upper
surface 101a
of the support frame 101. Imaging at different angles of the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 facilitates capturing of all the medications 112 in all the
medication bins
102 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 1A-
1C. In an embodiment, the receptacle base 2101 exemplarily illustrated in
FIGS. 21A-
21B and FIG. 22, comprises an embedded camera for capturing images of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 from the lower surface 101b of the support frame
101 of the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100. In this embodiment, the medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100 is then turned and placed face down using a temporary cover
(not
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shown) to keep the medications 112 intact and in place during imaging of the
upper
surface 101a and the lower surface 101b of the support frame 101.
[0131] In another embodiment, a standard scanner is used to capture, store,
and forward
images to the pill station manager application 2504 for future reference. The
pill station
manager application 2504 displays clear views of the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100 and provides enlarged views of each medication bin 102 for clarity on the
graphical
user interface (GUI) 2601 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 26. The pill
station manager
application 2504 further provides a detailed table providing a list of the
different drugs or
medications 112 in the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, compliance
urgency of
each of the medications 112, medication duration, dosage details, etc., on the
GUI 2601.
The pill station manager application 2504 also displays the latest medication
images, for
example, front images and back images of each of the medications 112 as
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 26, on the GUI 2601 for medication bin reconciliation.
[0132] The pill station manager application 2504 stores the captured images in
the
memory unit for record purposes or transmits the captured images to a remote
pharmacist
to confirm the right fill. Such remote checks allow robots, technicians, or a
licensed
pharmacist to fill the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and get the
fill approved
and signed off as per standards rules and regulations. Once the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 is approved by the licensed pharmacist, the medication organizer
tray
apparatus 100 is shipped to the healthcare recipients. For example, the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 is filled in one place and approved by the local
pharmacist
to be sent to a healthcare recipient who lives in another state. The
medication organizer
tray apparatus 100 is sent to the healthcare recipient after verification
and/or confirmation
of a correct fill by a remote pharmacist of that state.
[0133] Each image of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 that is taken
is
stored and shared with healthcare providers, for example, advisors through
their
respective user devices 2501, for example, smartphones. The captured images
can also be
used by advisors or healthcare professionals to instruct healthcare recipients
about their
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medications 112 and refer to the medications 112 by color, size, shape, etc.,
when
guiding the healthcare recipients to remove a particular medication 112. In an
embodiment, the image of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 is also
provided
on a healthcare recipient portal and a healthcare provider portal for allowing
the
healthcare recipients, healthcare providers, home health staff, etc., to view
the images.
These images are also sent to healthcare recipients' user devices 2901
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29, for example, phones, their computer, a care giver's
phone, and
other physicians to visually indicate what medications 112 have been loaded
into the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100. This image capture can be used to
verify a
correct fill in incidences of incorrect filling reporting by healthcare
recipients who may
be abusing, diverting, or hoarding the medications 112.
[0134] FIG. 27 illustrates a method for tracking wellness adherence of a
healthcare
recipient. As used herein, "wellness adherence" refers to compliance of
healthcare
recipients to healthcare provider prescribed medications 112 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 1B, and/or wellness activities such as exercise, diet, wound care, etc.
Tracking
wellness adherence comprises, for example, tracking whether a healthcare
recipient
administers medicines as prescribed as well as whether the healthcare
recipient continues
administering the medicines for a prescribed duration. In the method disclosed
herein, an
identifier code 123a exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, FIG. 31, and FIGS.
33A-33D,
configured to be positioned on a medical implement 2913 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG.
29, to identify the medical implement 2913 is provided 2701. As used herein,
"identifier
code" refers to a machine readable two-dimensional code rendered on an optical
label
comprising, for example, square dots arranged in a square grid on a white
background,
containing a substantial amount of information about a medical implement 2913
to which
the optical label is attached. The identifier code 123a is, for example, a
quick response
(QR) code. Also, as used herein, "medical implement" refers to any item used
in a
medical activity or a wellness activity, on which the identifier code 123a can
be affixed
for tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient. The medical
implement 2913 is,
for example, a medication bin 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C,
configured to
store one or more medications 112, a parenteral device 3302 exemplarily
illustrated in
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FIG. 33C, a fitness device, a medical identification card 3301 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 33B, a medical wellness plan, the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B, etc.
[0135] In an embodiment, the identifier code 123a is printed on the medical
implement
2913. In another embodiment, the identifier code 123a is fastened to the
medical
implement 2913, for example, using glue. In another embodiment, the identifier
code
123a is etched on the medical implement 2913. The identifier code 123a is
configured in
multiple sizes, for example, in about a 20 millimeter (mm) square, and is
printed in black
and white colors. The identifier code 123a is configured to be positioned on
multiple
surfaces of the medical implement 2913, for example, at the center on an upper
surface
102c of a medication bin 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 10 and FIG. 12,
or on one of
the inner surfaces, for example, on a bottom surface 106b of a customized bin
label 106
that covers the medication bin 102 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 33A. The
identifier
code 123a is configured to be positioned on a medical implement 2913, for
example, a
parenteral device 3302 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 33C, containing one
week's dose
of a medication and which is not discarded after taking a single dose of the
medication. In
the method disclosed herein, an additional identifier code 123a is pre-printed
on paper
and configured as an identifier code sticker along with labels and notes
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 31, to allow a healthcare recipient to enter information
related to
medications 112 or a medical implement 2913 on the labels or on the notes and
then stick
the labels and the notes along with the identifier code 123a on the medical
implement
2913. The identifier code 123a is configured to be of use to healthcare
recipients who use
user devices 2901, for example, smart phones, tablet computing devices, etc.,
and
applications such as a wellness adherence tracking application 2902 on their
user devices
2901 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29. For example, patients who are
prescribed
medications 112 can use the identifier codes 123a and the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 on their smart phones, tablet computing devices, etc., to
track the
patients' wellness adherence.
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[0136] In an embodiment, the identifier code 123a is configured to be
positioned on a
medication bin 102 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 to identify
the
medication bin 102, in the absence of the receptacle base 2101 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIGS. 21A-21B and FIG. 22, that enables detection of removal of each
medication bin
102 from the support frame 101 via the conductive circuit layer 107
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1B. The method disclosed herein allows tracking of
wellness
adherence of healthcare recipients who use the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100
without the receptacle base 2101 and/or without the conductive circuit layer
107. The
method disclosed herein tracks the wellness adherence of a healthcare
recipient using
identifier codes 123a positioned on medication bins 102, when the medication
bins 102
are removed from the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and are used as
standalone
medication bins 102 for storing medications 112 during travel, for
refrigeration of
medications 112, etc. The table below summarizes different scenarios for use
of the
identifier code 123a on a medical implement 2913:
Medication organizer tray apparatus/ Conductive Identifier code
Receptacle base/ Parenteral circuit layer needed
configuration
Medication organizer tray apparatus Yes No
with a receptacle base
Medication organizer tray apparatus No Yes
standalone without a receptacle base
Wellness adherence tracking No Yes
application (Mobile Application)
Needed
[0137] As exemplarily illustrated in the table above, an identifier code 123a
is used for
tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient when the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 is used without the receptacle base 2101 and/or without the
conductive
circuit layer 107. The method disclosed herein employs a wellness adherence
tracking
system 2900 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, comprising at least one
processor 3001
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exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 30, configured to execute computer program
instructions
for tracking the wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient. The wellness
adherence
tracking system 2900 comprises a wellness adherence tracking application 2902
deployed
on the healthcare recipient's user device 2901. The wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 is a software application downloadable and usable on the
healthcare
recipient's user device 2901 for tracking the healthcare recipient's wellness
adherence in
the above tabulated scenarios. The wellness adherence tracking application
2902 on the
healthcare recipient's user device 2901 communicates with the backend server
2502 of
the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 via a network 2501, for example,
the
internet exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29.
[0138] The identifier code 123a is exclusive, that is, unique to each medical
implement
2913 for each healthcare recipient as the identifier code 123a is, for
example, printed at a
pharmacy, or pre-printed and sent to the pharmacy for a specific healthcare
recipient, or
sent directly to the healthcare recipient, for example, through mail, in
person, or via
electronic mail in a printable format. In an embodiment, the identifier code
123a is
printed at the pharmacy using Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved ink
as
there is minimal exposure of the medications 112 to the identifier code 123a.
In an
embodiment, additional identifier code stickers are printed, for example, on
paper and
supplied to the pharmacy for including the identifier code stickers in the
healthcare
recipient's package, where these identifier code stickers may not be
positioned on the
medication bins 102. In this embodiment, the additional identifier code
stickers need not
use the FDA approved ink. The identifier code 123a is configured to store
alphanumeric
data with a predefined data size in one or more of multiple formats as
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 31. The identifier code integration depends on one or more
requirements comprising, for example, pharmacy printers with sufficient
registration to
print the identifier code 123a and the wellness adherence tracking application
2902 that
requires a minimum number of clicks to scan the identifier code 123a.
[0139] A healthcare recipient can scan 2702 the identifier code 123a of the
medical
implement 2913 via a graphical user interface (GUI) 2911 provided by the
wellness
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adherence tracking application 2902 of the wellness adherence tracking system
2900
accessible on the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG.
29. The wellness adherence tracking application 2902, in communication with
the
backend server 2502, decodes 2703 the scanned identifier code 123a and
validates the
decoded identifier code 123a. The identifier code 123a is encoded, for
example,
encrypted, in a way that any other code scanning application apart from the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 will fail to decode the identifier code
123a. Only the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 can decode the identifier code
123a. If
another code scanning application attempts to decode the identifier code 123a,
the
identifier code 123a redirects the healthcare recipient, who is scanning the
identifier code
123a, to a certified website of the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 to
download
the wellness adherence tracking application 2902. In an embodiment, the
identifier code
123a contains a common key for decoding the identifier code 123a. In another
embodiment, only the healthcare recipient and his/her healthcare providers can
decode
the identifier code 123a using their respective keys. For example, the
identifier code 123a
positioned on a bottom surface 106b of a customized bin label 106 that seals
the
medication bin 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 33A, can only be read by
the wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 deployed on authorized user devices 2901,
for
example, mobile phones, of the healthcare recipient and his/her healthcare
provider and
not by any other healthcare recipient or another healthcare provider having
the same
wellness adherence tracking application 2902. This type of security precludes
another
healthcare recipient having the same wellness adherence tracking application
2902 from
reading the identifier code 123a and obtaining another healthcare recipient's
medical
information or accessing a wellness adherence database 2915 of the backend
server 2502
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, through a server website account. This
type of security
also strengthens the privacy of the healthcare recipient in accordance with
Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations.
[0140] In an embodiment, the identifier code 123a comprises one or more
authentication codes embedded therein for validation of the identifier code
123a with
reference to authentication codes stored by the wellness adherence tracking
system 2900
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in the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 and/or one or more databases,
for example,
the wellness adherence database 2915 of the backend server 2502. In an
example, an
authentication code and a healthcare recipient code is encrypted and embedded
in the
identifier code 123a, for example, a quick response (QR) code. The wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902, upon scanning the identifier code 123a, decrypts
the identifier
code 123a and searches for the authentication code and the healthcare
recipient code. In
an embodiment, the authentication codes are positioned in a specific known
location or
tagged with a header or a footer such that the wellness adherence tracking
application
2902 recognizes the authentication codes from a data snippet. If the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 matches the identified authentication code to an
internal single
or multiple authentication code, then the identifier code 123a and an
associated message
embedded in the identifier code 123a is authentic and valid. If the identified
authentication code does not match with the internal single or multiple
authentication
code, then the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 discards the
identifier code
123a and displays an error message on the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911
of the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 stating that the identifier code
123a is
invalid. The identifier code 123a has a standard built-in error detection and
correction
option to restore data if the identifier code 123a is damaged.
[0141] The identifier code 123a assists in identifying potential counterfeit
medications.
In an embodiment, when the identifier code 123a is scanned, decoded, and
validated, the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 renders a message on the GUI 2911
on the
healthcare recipient's user device 2901 to validate, for example, sources or
purchase
locations of medications 112. Furthermore, the wellness adherence tracking
application
2902 requests the healthcare recipient to key into a device medication
identification (ID)
serial number and enter the location of purchase of a medication 112 to
further validate
the authenticity of the medical implement 2913, for example, the medication
bin 102 that
stores the medication 112. In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking
system
2900 transmits an alert notification on the GUI 2911, for example, based on a
validation
status of the decoded identifier code 123a. The validation status of the
decoded identifier
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code 123a is, for example, valid or invalid. The alert notification warns the
healthcare
recipient of an invalid identifier code.
[0142] In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 performs
encryption and decryption of the authentication codes and messages embedded in
the
identifier code 123a using, for example, public-key cryptography which uses an
asymmetric key pair having a public key and a private key. The public key is
publicly
available and the private key is kept secret. The authentication codes, the
messages, and
other medical information stored in the identifier code 123a are encrypted
with the public
key and decrypted only with the private key. In another embodiment, the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 executes a pretty good privacy (PGP) data
encryption
and decryption computer program that provides cryptographic privacy and
authentication
for data communication. The PGP encryption and decryption computer program
combines symmetric-key encryption and public-key encryption. In this
embodiment, the
wellness adherence tracking system 2900 encrypts the authentication codes, the
messages, and other medical information in the identifier code 123a by
executing a
symmetric encryption algorithm using a symmetric key that is used only once.
The
wellness adherence tracking system 2900 encrypts the symmetric key with the
public key
of the healthcare recipient's user device 2901. The wellness adherence
tracking system
2900 sends the symmetric key encrypted with the public key along with the
identifier
code 123a containing the authentication codes, the messages, and other medical
information to the healthcare recipient's user device 2901, where the
symmetric key is
decrypted using a private key of the healthcare recipient's user device 2901
to decrypt the
identifier code 123a and access the authentication codes, the messages, and
other medical
information.
[0143] After decoding and validating the identifier code 123a, the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 of the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 reads
and
obtains medical information associated with the medical implement 2913 and/or
an
activity associated with the medical implement 2913 from the decoded and
validated
identifier code 123a, for example, in a quick response format or another coded
format,
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and wellness adherence criteria. The medical information encoded in the
identifier code
123a comprises, for example, one or more of a number of medications 112 in the
medical
implement 2913, a list of the medications 112 in the medical implement 2913,
drug
names, directions to follow, color coding of dosage times, name of a
prescriber, a date of
preparation, a description of contents of the medical implement 2913, a
personalized
website link configured to link to a secure online interface comprising
healthcare
recipient information, a healthcare recipient identifier, etc., and any
combination thereof.
The activity associated with the medical implement 2913 comprises, for
example,
administration of one or more medications 112, an exercise activity, a diet
activity,
wound care, a health checkup, etc. As used herein, "wellness adherence
criteria" refers to
one or more parameters associated with administration of medications 112 or
performance of the activity that a healthcare provider prescribes to a
healthcare recipient
in a medication regimen or a wellness regimen. The wellness adherence criteria
comprise,
for example, dosage information such as amount of a medication 112, a date for
administering one or more medications 112, a time of day for administering the
medications 112, directions to follow, etc. In an embodiment, the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 obtains the wellness adherence criteria from the
decoded and
validated identifier code 123a. In another embodiment, the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 obtains the wellness adherence criteria from one or more
databases, for
example, the wellness adherence database 2915 of the backend server 2502 via a
network
2501.
[0144] In an embodiment, the identifier code 123a comprises supplementary
information comprising, for example, one or more of coupons, advertisements,
incentives
for wellness adherence, status of incentives, appointments for a week,
reminders, quotes,
images, wellness information, wellness messages, promotional messages, gaming
information, quick reference telephone numbers of healthcare providers, etc.,
embedded
therein. The incentives for wellness adherence comprise, for example, one or
more
awards for wellness adherence along with an award message. The wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 decodes and displays the award message on the
graphical user
interface (GUI) 2911 of the healthcare recipient's user device 2901. The
healthcare
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recipient, who has been rewarded for consistent wellness adherence, is
directed to a
website or a web link to redeem the award. The wellness messages comprise, for
example, a motivational message, a healthcare recipient specific message, a
generic
health motivational message, a medication specific message, a disease specific
message,
etc. In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902
displays
messages, for example, wellness messages contained in the identifier code 123a
at the
time of the scan of the identifier code 123a along with instructions. The
promotional
messages comprise, for example, one or more messages and a web link associated
with
each message for promotional purposes such as a wellness brand promotion, a
wellness
event promotion, etc. The wellness adherence tracking system 2900 targets
messages to
healthcare recipients based on specific diseases, medications 112 present,
wellness
adherence rates of the healthcare recipient, etc. The wellness adherence
tracking system
2900 renders discounts and award points to healthcare recipients who opt to
receive the
promotional messages. The wellness adherence tracking system 2900 does not
transmit
the promotional messages to premium healthcare recipients. The wellness
adherence
tracking system 2900 encodes the medical information in the identifier code
123a to
allow the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 to decode the medical
information.
[0145] The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 determines 2704
whether the
decoded and validated identifier code 123a contains the encoded medical
information, for
example, using a key that is embedded in the wellness adherence tracking
application
2902. If the identifier code 123a contains the encoded medical information,
the wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 extracts 2705 the medical information
directly from
the decoded and validated identifier code 123a. In an embodiment, if the
medical
information is not available in the decoded and validated identifier code
123a, the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 transmits the decoded and
validated
identifier code 123a to one or more databases, for example, an internal
application
database 2912, the wellness adherence database 2915 in the backend server
2502, or one
or more public databases 2916 via a network 2501 exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 29, and
retrieves 2706 the medical information and the wellness adherence criteria
from the
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databases, for example, 2912, 2915, or 2916. The wellness adherence tracking
application
2902 loads the extracted medical information and the wellness adherence
criteria in the
internal application database 2912 for performing further actions on the
extracted medical
information and the wellness adherence criteria. In this embodiment, if the
medical
information is not available in the decoded and validated identifier code
123a, the
wellness adherence tracking system 2900 prompts the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 and the internal application database 2912. If the medical
information
does not exist in the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 and the
internal
application database 2912, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902
connects to
the backend server 2502 or to one or more public databases 2916 via the
network 2501 to
retrieve the medical information and the wellness adherence criteria.
[0146] In an embodiment, if the encoded medical information becomes outdated
over
time and requires updates, the medical information is updated in one or more
databases,
for example, the wellness adherence database 2915 at the backend server 2502
to which
the identifier code 123a can link, or to which the wellness adherence tracking
application
2902 on the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 can link to retrieve the
medical
information. In another embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking
application 2902
may also prompt the healthcare recipient to enter the medical information and
the
wellness adherence criteria via the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911 of the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902. The wellness adherence tracking system
2900
receives 2707 the entered medical information and the wellness adherence
criteria from
the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 via the GUI 2911. In this
embodiment, each
time the healthcare recipient scans the identifier code 123a, the user entered
medical
information is displayed on the GUI 2911.
[0147] In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902, in
communication with the user device 2901 and/or the backend server 2502,
validates the
medical information associated with the medical implement 2913 and/or the
activity
associated with the medical implement 2913 and loads valid medical information
into the
internal application database 2912 for performing actions on the valid medical
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information. For example, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902
verifies
whether the decoded data from the identifier code 123a is correct, incorrect,
counterfeit,
or not readable. If the decoded data is incorrect, not readable, or
counterfeit, then the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 transmits the decoded data to a
data logger
2909 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, or to the backend server 2502 that
logs the
decoded data for further analysis. In an embodiment, the wellness adherence
tracking
system 2900 renders an alert notification via the graphical user interface
(GUI) 2911 of
the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 on identifying invalid
medical
information. That is, the backend server 2502 transmits an alert notification
to the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 on the healthcare recipient's
user device
2901 and a healthcare provider's user device 2503 exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 25, to
warn them of a contaminated identifier code and of a potential malicious
attack. In an
embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 transmits an alert
notification
on the GUI 2911, for example, based on a validation status of the medical
information
contained in the decoded identifier code 123a. The validation status of the
medical
information is, for example, valid or invalid. The alert notification warns
the healthcare
recipient of invalid medical information.
[0148] In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 on
the
healthcare recipient's user device 2901 validates the decoded data containing
the medical
information by executing a hash function on the decoded data for determining
whether
the decoded data is incorrect, not readable, or counterfeit. The wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 executes the hash function on the decoded data and
generates a
key digest. A key digest is a type of hash that provides a fingerprint for the
decoded data.
The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 transmits the decoded data
encrypted
by the hash function and the key digest to the backend server 2502. The
backend server
2502 executes an algorithm to encrypt the decoded data and runs a hash
function on the
decoded data again. If the key digest generated by the hash function at the
backend server
2502 matches the key digest that was transmitted by the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902, the healthcare recipient can conclude that the decoded data
is intact and
not tampered with, and that no data snippets have been injected into the
decoded data.
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[0149] The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 renders 2708 the
extracted
and validated medical information and multiple wellness adherence options on
the
graphical user interface (GUI) 2911. The wellness adherence options comprise,
for
example, indicators that define administration and non-administration of one
or more
medications 112 such as medication taken or medication not taken, presence and
absence
of medications 112 in the medical implement 2913 such as medication missing,
performance and non-performance of the activity associated with the medical
implement
2913, a percentage of performance of the activity such as exercise performed
for half of
the prescribed duration, an abortion of the activity, an establishment of
communication
with a prescriber of the activity, time settings for the administration of the
medications
112 and the performance of the activity within preconfigured time periods such
as
exercise performance snoozed till a future time instant, etc.
[0150] In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking system 2900
configures the
wellness adherence options in accordance with the wellness adherence criteria
and/or
user inputs received via the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911 of the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902. The wellness adherence tracking system
2900
identifies possibilities of wellness adherence based on adherence of the
healthcare
recipient to the prescribed wellness adherence criteria and accordingly
configures the
wellness adherence options. Consider an example where the prescribed wellness
adherence criteria comprises administering two pills each day and reducing the
number of
pills to be taken per day to one pill after a certain number of days. The
healthcare
provider makes a decision on the number of pills to be taken per day by the
healthcare
recipient. In this example, the wellness adherence tracking system 2900
configures the
wellness adherence criteria as "2 pills per day to 1 pill per day" and renders
wellness
adherence options as pills taken, pills not taken, pill consumption reduced,
and pill
consumption snoozed on the GUI 2911.
[0151] The healthcare recipient provides inputs for one or more of the
rendered
wellness adherence options, for example, by checking a box displayed on the
graphical
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user interface (GUI) 2911, entering the number of pills taken, activating a
snooze button
displayed on the GUI 2911, etc. The wellness adherence tracking application
2902
receives 2709 the inputs for one or more of the rendered wellness adherence
options from
the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 via the GUI 2911. The wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 logs 2710 the received inputs in association with
the wellness
adherence criteria in the user device 2901 and/or one or more databases, for
example, the
wellness adherence database 2915 of the backend server 2502, to track the
wellness
adherence of the healthcare recipient. In an embodiment, the wellness
adherence tracking
application 2902, in communication with the backend server 2502, compares the
received
inputs with the wellness adherence criteria and determines whether the
healthcare
recipient has achieved wellness adherence or not.
[0152] Consider an example where prescribed wellness adherence criteria from a
medication regimen comprises a dosage of a pill to be taken once per day post
breakfast,
a capsule to be taken once per day post dinner, and a brisk walk to be
performed for 45
minutes per day. The wellness adherence criteria therefore comprise 1 pill to
be taken
between 7 am and 10 am, 1 capsule to be taken between 7 pm and 12 pm, and an
exercise
activity to be performed for 45 minutes. Based on the wellness adherence
criteria, the
wellness adherence tracking system 2900 configures the wellness adherence
options per
medication, for example, the pill and the capsule, and the exercise activity
as follows: for
medication 1, pill administered, pill not administered, pill administration
snoozed, and
pill missing. Similarly, for medication 2, the configured wellness adherence
options
comprise, for example, capsule administered, capsule not administered, capsule
administration snoozed, and capsule missing. For the exercise activity, the
configured
wellness adherence options comprise, for example, activity performed, activity
not
performed, activity snoozed, and activity partially performed. Assuming the
healthcare
recipient selects pill administered, capsule administered, and activity
performed, the
wellness adherence tracking system 2900 compares the user selections and
logging times
of the user selections with the wellness adherence criteria and determines
that the
healthcare recipient has achieved wellness adherence. In an embodiment, the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 transmits alert notifications on the GUI 2911,
for
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example, based on time settings configured on the healthcare recipient's user
device
2901. The wellness adherence tracking system 2900 configures the alert
notifications to
remind the healthcare recipient to perform one or more actions to meet the
wellness
adherence criteria. For example, these alert notifications remind a healthcare
recipient to
perform an incomplete activity that was snoozed by the healthcare recipient.
[0153] In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902
transmits
alerts to the healthcare recipient via the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911
for capturing
one or more images in one or more views of a medical implement 2913, for
example, the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C
and
FIGS. 2A-2B, at configurable time instants. The backend server 2502 of the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 then verifies the type, number, and arrangement
of
medications 112 in the medication bins 102 of the medication organizer tray
apparatus
100 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1B, in accordance with the wellness
adherence criteria
prescribed by the healthcare provider using the captured images for tracking
the wellness
adherence of the healthcare recipient in accordance with the wellness
adherence criteria.
In this embodiment, the healthcare recipient may use an image capture device
of the user
device 2901, for example, a mobile phone's camera to capture images of the
medication
bins 102 and the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 and transmit the
captured
images to the backend server 2502 for review. The healthcare recipient may use
any
portable user device 2901 with a camera, for example, a smart phone, a tablet
computing
device, a video camera, etc., to capture images of the filled medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100, in one or more different views, for example, a top view, a
bottom view,
etc., based on which view of the medication bins 102 is clear with minimal to
no
markings. For example, if medical information such as days and times for
administering
medications 112 are printed on the customized bin labels 106 of the medication
bins 102
exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2B, the healthcare recipient can capture
an image of
a bottom view of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 using the image
capture
device in the healthcare recipient's user device 2901.
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[0154] The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 on the healthcare
recipient's
user device 2901 with the image capture device transmits the captured images
to the
backend server 2502 for review by healthcare providers, for example, advisors.
The
advisors can review the transmitted images and confirm that the medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100 has been filled properly. At the end of each day or mid-
week or
randomly, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 transmits alerts to
the
healthcare recipient to capture an image of their medication organizer tray
apparatus 100.
The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 transmits the captured image
to the
backend server 2502 for review by an advisor. The advisor reviews the
transmitted image
to confirm adherence, medications filled correctly for the rest of the week,
appropriate
use of abusable medications, etc. Furthermore, if a healthcare provider such
as a clinician
or a pharmacist changes the medication dosage mid-week, the healthcare
recipient will be
required to reorganize the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 for the
remaining
week to reflect the new dose regimen. The wellness adherence tracking
application 2902
transmits alerts to the healthcare recipient to capture an image of the
reorganized
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 again for the advisors to confirm that
the
medications 112 have been loaded and reorganized as per the new dose regime in
the
healthcare provider's request.
[0155] FIG. 28 exemplarily illustrates a flowchart comprising the steps
performed by
the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
29, for
dynamically analyzing medical information and adapting the workflow. In an
embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 dynamically analyzes
the
medical information with historical data 2807 and 2808 and trends and predicts
future
medical information and planned actionable tasks and outcomes. The wellness
adherence
tracking system 2900 executes an algorithm for dynamic real time analyzing,
correlating,
trending, and updating triggers, alerts, and schedules of scanned data and
other medical
information. The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 of the wellness
adherence
tracking system 2900 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, scans the identifier
codes
positioned on medication bins 2801, the identifier code positioned on another
medical
implement 2802, for example, a parenteral device, a fitness device, etc., and
the identifier
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code from an unknown entity 2803, and transmits the scans to the backend
server 2502 of
the wellness adherence tracking system 2900. The backend server 2502 receives
the
scans and validates 2804 the authenticity of the scanned identifier codes as
disclosed in
the detailed description of FIG. 27. The backend server 2502 then extracts
2805 medical
information from the scanned and validated identifier codes and normalizes
2806 the
extracted medical information. The backend server 2502 further receives
medication bin
historical data 2807 comprising, for example, number of pills taken, number of
medication bins emptied, etc., and medical implement historical data 2808 that
is stored
from past scans to perform an analysis of the normalized medical information.
[0156] The backend server 2502 analyzes 2809 the normalized medical
information
with the medication bin historical data 2807 and the medical implement
historical data
2808, for example, using the Kalman filter algorithm. The Kalman filter
algorithm uses a
mathematical predictive representation model of the functions of the medical
implement
2913 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, and the healthcare recipient's
interaction with the
medical implement 2913 with respect to time, frequency, duration, etc., over
time. The
Kalman filter algorithm compares expected measurements of the mathematical
predictive
representation model with actual measurements received from the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 on the healthcare recipient's user device 2901
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29, to predict future measurements. Based on the predicted
future
measurements generated by application of the Kalman filter algorithm, the
backend
server 2502 compares the predicted future measurements with thresholds of
measurements predefined for the medical implement 2913. If the predicted
future
measurements are outside of the thresholds, then the backend server 2502
initiates pre-
programmed automated alerts and proactive intervention. For example, if a
healthcare
recipient has delayed taking his/her morning medications for the past week,
the backend
server 2502 executes the Kalman filter algorithm to analyze the trend and
predicts the
consumption of the next morning's medications will be also be delayed. If the
Kalman
filter algorithm predicts that the delayed time is beyond the window of dose
time, for
example, a few hours before and after the time that the healthcare recipient
should ideally
take his/her medications, the backend server 2502 transmits a preemptive alert
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notification to the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 to remind him/her
to take
his/her medications. The backend server 2502 transmits this preemptive alert
notification,
for example, at a previous dose time or a few hours before a dose time alarm
based on a
pre-programmed intervention plan.
[0157] The Kalman filter algorithm executes on the backend server 2502 and
generates
2810 projected values, for example, the expected healthcare recipient
medication intake
to identify 2812 projected scans or alerts that require intervention,
preemptively generate
alert notifications, and perform escalations. The backend server 2502 compares
2811 the
projected values to a trigger or alert threshold 2814, for example, a pre-
programmed
medication intake time and determines the difference. If a trigger or alert
time schedule
2815, for example, a dose time is 10:00 am and the Kalman filter algorithm
predicts that
the healthcare recipient will take the medications at 12:30 pm and the alert
threshold time
2814 for escalating an alert is 12:00 noon, the backend server 2502 determines
the
difference of 30 minutes over the threshold. Since the difference is above the
alert
threshold time 2814, the backend server 2502 generates an alert. The backend
server
2502 dynamically updates 2813 the schedule and thresholds. The backend server
2502
implements an escalation flow 2816, for example, by triggering a call 2817 to
the
healthcare recipient, triggering a call 2818 to the healthcare provider,
sending urgent
alerts 2819 to the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 and/or the
healthcare provider's
user device 2503 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 25, sending 2820 an alert
through
another device, etc.
[0158] FIG. 29 exemplarily illustrates the wellness adherence tracking system
2900 for
tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient. The wellness adherence
tracking
system 2900 is accessible by a healthcare recipient's user device 2901 via a
network
2501, for example, a short range network or a long range network. The wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 is accessible, for example, through a broad
spectrum of
technologies and devices such as personal computers with access to the
internet, intemet
enabled cellular phones, tablet computing devices, smart glasses, etc. In an
embodiment,
the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 is configured as a web based
platform, for
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example, a website hosted on a server or a network of servers. In another
embodiment,
the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 comprises the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 downloadable and usable on the healthcare recipient's user
device 2901.
In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 is implemented
as a
client-server architecture comprising the wellness adherence tracking
application 2902
that communicates with the backend server 2502 via a network 2501 as
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29. In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking
system 2900 is
implemented in a cloud computing environment. The wellness adherence tracking
system
2900 is a cloud computing based platform implemented as a service for tracking
wellness
adherence of a healthcare recipient.
[0159] The healthcare recipient's user device 2901 is an electronic device,
for example,
a personal computer, a notebook, a tablet computing device, a mobile computer,
a mobile
phone, a smart phone, a portable computing device, a laptop, a personal
digital assistant,
a wearable device such as the Google GlassTM of Google Inc., the Apple WatchTM
of Apple
Inc., etc., a touch centric device, a workstation, a client device, a portable
electronic
device, a network enabled computing device, an interactive network enabled
communication device, any other suitable computing equipment, combinations of
multiple pieces of computing equipment, etc., capable of running the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902. The wellness adherence tracking system 2900
disclosed herein
further comprises a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, for
example, a
memory unit 3002 and at least one processor 3001 communicatively coupled to
the non-
transitory computer readable storage medium exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
30. The non-
transitory computer readable storage medium is configured to store computer
program
instructions defined by modules, for example, 2903, 2904, 2905, 2906, 2907,
2908, 2909,
2910, etc., of the wellness adherence tracking system 2900. The processor 3001
is
configured to execute the defined computer program instructions.
[0160] In an embodiment, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 of
the
wellness adherence tracking system 2900 is configured and coded as a mobile
application. The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 comprises a
graphical user
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interface (GUI) 2911, a scanner 2903, a decoder 2904, a data extraction module
2905, a
data rendering module 2906, a data reception module 2907, an analytic engine
2908, a
data logger 2909, an alert notification module 2910, and an internal
application database
2912. The GUI 2911 is, for example, a webpage of a website hosted by the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900, an online web interface, a web based
downloadable
application interface, a mobile based downloadable application interface, etc.
The
scanner 2903 scans the identifier code 123a positioned on a medical implement
2913 via
the GUI 2911. The decoder 2904 decodes and validates the scanned identifier
code 123a
as disclosed in the detailed description of FIG. 27. In an embodiment, the
decoder 2904
validates the decoded identifier code 123a by comparing the authentication
codes
embedded therein with authentication codes stored by the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 in the internal application database 2912 in the user device
2901 and/or
in one or more databases, for example, the wellness adherence database 2915 of
the
backend server 2502.
[0161] The data extraction module 2905 obtains medical information associated
with
the medical implement 2913 and/or an activity associated with the medical
implement
2913 from the decoded and validated identifier code 123a, and/or wellness
adherence
criteria. The decoder 2904 determines the presence of medical information in
the
identifier code 123a. When the decoder 2904 determines the presence of medical
information in the decoded and validated identifier code 123a, the data
extraction module
2905 directly extracts the medical information contained in the decoded and
validated
identifier code 123a. In an embodiment, the data extraction module 2905
receives the
medical information and the wellness adherence criteria from the healthcare
recipient's
user device 2901 via the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911. In another
embodiment, the
decoder 2904 transmits the decoded and validated identifier code 123a to one
or more
databases, for example, the wellness adherence database 2915 in the backend
server
2502, the public databases 2916, etc., via the network 2501, and the data
extraction
module 2905 retrieves the medical information and the wellness adherence
criteria from
the wellness adherence database 2915, the public databases 2916, etc., via the
network
2501 based on the decoded and validated identifier code 123a. In an
embodiment, the
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analytic engine 2908, in communication with the user device 2901 and/or the
backend
server 2502, validates the medical information associated with the medical
implement
2913 and/or the activity associated with the medical implement 2913 and loads
the valid
medical information in the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 or the
backend
server 2502 for performing actions on the valid medical information. The data
rendering
module 2906 renders the medical information and multiple wellness adherence
options
on the GUI 2911. In an embodiment, the data rendering module 2906 configures
the
wellness adherence options in accordance with the wellness adherence criteria
and user
inputs and then renders the configured wellness adherence options on the GUI
2911.
[0162] The data reception module 2907 receives inputs for one or more of the
rendered
wellness adherence options from the healthcare recipient's user device 2901.
The data
logger 2909 logs the received inputs in association with the wellness
adherence criteria in
the user device 2901 and/or one or more databases, for example, the wellness
adherence
database 2915 for tracking the wellness adherence of the healthcare recipient.
The
wellness adherence database 2915 refers to any storage area or medium that can
be used
for storing data and files. The wellness adherence database 2915 can be, for
example, a
structured query language (SQL) data store or a not only SQL (NoSQL) data
store such
as the Microsoft SQL Server , the Oracle servers, the MySQL database of
MySQL
AB Company, the mongoDB of MongoDB, Inc., the Neo4j graph database of Neo
Technology Corporation, the Cassandra database of the Apache Software
Foundation, the
HBa5eTM database of the Apache Software Foundation, etc. In an embodiment, the
wellness adherence database 2915 can also be a location on a file system. In
another
embodiment, the wellness adherence database 2915 can be remotely accessed by
the
wellness adherence tracking system 2900 via the network 2501. In another
embodiment,
the wellness adherence database 2915 is a cloud based database implemented in
a cloud
computing environment, where computing resources are delivered as a service
over the
network 2501.
[0163] The alert notification module 2910 transmits alert notifications on the
graphical
user interface (GUI) 2911 based on alerting criteria comprising, for example,
one or more
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of time settings configured on the healthcare recipient's user device 2901, a
validation
status of the decoded identifier code 123a, a validation status of the medical
information
contained in the decoded identifier code 123a, etc. The alert notifications,
for example,
remind the healthcare recipient to perform one or more actions to meet the
wellness
adherence criteria, warn the healthcare recipient of an invalid identifier
code and/or
invalid medical information, etc. In an embodiment, the alert notification
module 2910
transmits alerts for capturing one or more images in one or more views of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS.
2A-2B,
on the GUI 2911 at configurable time instants. In this embodiment, the
analytic engine
2908 verifies type, number, and arrangement of medications 112 in the
medication bins
102 of the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 1B, in
accordance with the wellness adherence criteria prescribed by a healthcare
provider using
the captured images for tracking the wellness adherence of the healthcare
recipient in
accordance with the wellness adherence criteria. The internal application
database 2912
stores the medical information that can be retrieved by the data extraction
module 2905 if
the medical information is not available in the decoded identifier code 123a.
In an
embodiment, the backend server 2502 further comprises an analytic engine 2914
in
addition to the wellness adherence database 2915. The analytic engine 2914
dynamically
analyzes the medical information with historical data and trends and predicts
future
medical information and planned actionable tasks and outcomes as disclosed in
the
detailed description of FIG. 28. In an embodiment, the analytic engine 2914
dynamically
assesses health, wellness, and adherence requirements of the healthcare
recipient and
updates the wellness adherence criteria for an associated medical implement
2913.
[0164] FIG. 30 exemplarily illustrates the hardware architecture 3000 of the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, employed
for tracking
wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient. The wellness adherence tracking
system
2900 is a computer system that is programmable using a high level computer
programming language. The wellness adherence tracking system 2900 may be
implemented using programmed and purposeful hardware. As exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 30, the hardware architecture 3000 of the wellness adherence tracking
system 2900
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comprises a processor 3001, a non-transitory computer readable storage medium
such as
a memory unit 3002 for storing programs and data, an input/output (I/0)
controller 3003,
a network interface 3004, a data bus 3005, a display unit 3006, input devices
3007, a
fixed media drive 3008 such as a hard drive, a removable media drive 3009 for
receiving
removable media, output devices 3010, etc. The processor 3001 refers to any
one or more
microprocessors, central processing unit (CPU) devices, finite state machines,
computers,
microcontrollers, digital signal processors, logic, a logic device, an
electronic circuit, an
application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate
array (FPGA), a
chip, etc., or any combination thereof, capable of executing computer programs
or a
series of commands, instructions, or state transitions. The processor 3001 may
also be
implemented as a processor set comprising, for example, a programmed
microprocessor
and a math or graphics co-processor. The processor 3001 is selected, for
example, from
the Intel processors such as the Itanium microprocessor or the Pentium
processors,
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD ) processors such as the Athlon processor,
U1traSPARC processors, microSPARC processors, hp processors, International
Business Machines (IBM ) processors such as the PowerPC microprocessor, the
MIPS
reduced instruction set computer (RISC) processor of MIPS Technologies, Inc.,
RISC
based computer processors of ARM Holdings, Motorola processors, Qualcomm
processors, etc. The wellness adherence tracking system 2900 disclosed herein
is not
limited to employing a processor 3001. The wellness adherence tracking system
2900
may also employ a controller or a microcontroller. The processor 3001 executes
the
modules, for example, 2903, 2904, 2905, 2906, 2907, 2908, 2909, 2910, etc., of
the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 of the wellness adherence
tracking system
2900 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29.
[0165] The memory unit 3002 is used for storing programs, applications, and
data. For
example, the scanner 2903, the decoder 2904, the data extraction module 2905,
the data
rendering module 2906, the data reception module 2907, the analytic engine
2908, the
data logger 2909, the alert notification module 2910, etc., are stored in the
memory unit
3002 of the user device 2901 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29. The memory
unit 3002
is, for example, a random access memory (RAM) or another type of dynamic
storage
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device that stores information and instructions for execution by the processor
3001. The
memory unit 3002 also stores temporary variables and other intermediate
information
used during execution of the instructions by the processor 3001. The wellness
adherence
tracking system 2900 further comprises a read only memory (ROM) or another
type of
static storage device that stores static information and instructions for the
processor 3001.
The I/0 controller 3003 controls input actions and output actions performed by
the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902.
[0166] The network interface 3004 enables connection of the wellness adherence
tracking application 2902 to the network 2501 exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
29. In an
embodiment, the network interface 3004 is provided as an interface card also
referred to
as a line card. The network interface 3004 comprises, for example, one or more
of an
infrared (IR) interface, an interface implementing Wi-Fi of Wi-Fi Alliance
Corporation,
a universal serial bus (USB) interface, a FireWire interface of Apple Inc.,
an Ethernet
interface, a frame relay interface, a cable interface, a digital subscriber
line (DSL)
interface, a token ring interface, a peripheral controller interconnect (PCI)
interface, a
local area network (LAN) interface, a wide area network (WAN) interface,
interfaces
using serial protocols, interfaces using parallel protocols, and Ethernet
communication
interfaces, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) interfaces, a high speed serial
interface
(HSSI), a fiber distributed data interface (FDDI), interfaces based on a
transmission
control protocol (TCP)/internet protocol (IP), interfaces based on wireless
communications technology such as satellite technology, radio frequency (RF)
technology, near field communication, etc. The data bus 3005 permits
communications
between the modules, for example, 2903, 2904, 2905, 2906, 2907, 2908, 2909,
2910,
2911, 2912, etc., of the wellness adherence tracking application 2902.
[0167] The display unit 3006, via the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29, displays information, display interfaces, user
interface elements
such as text fields, checkboxes, text boxes, windows, etc., for allowing the
healthcare
recipient to scan the identifier code 123a exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29,
enter the
medical information and the wellness adherence criteria, provide user inputs
to meet the
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wellness adherence criteria, select the wellness adherence options, etc. The
display unit
3006 comprises, for example, a liquid crystal display, a plasma display, an
organic light
emitting diode (OLED) based display, etc. The input devices 3007 are used for
inputting
data into the wellness adherence tracking system 2900. The healthcare
recipient uses the
input devices 3007 to provide inputs to the wellness adherence tracking system
2900. For
example, a healthcare recipient may enter the medical information and the
wellness
adherence criteria for a particular medical implement 2913 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG.
29, when a correct identifier code 123a is determined, etc., using the input
devices 3007.
The input devices 3007 are, for example, a keyboard such as an alphanumeric
keyboard,
a microphone, a joystick, a pointing device such as a computer mouse, a touch
pad, a
light pen, a physical button, a touch sensitive display device, a track ball,
a pointing stick,
any device capable of sensing a tactile input, etc.
[0168] Computer applications and programs are used for operating the wellness
adherence tracking system 2900. The programs are loaded onto the fixed media
drive
3008 and into the memory unit 3002 of the user device 2901 via the removable
media
drive 3009. In an embodiment, the computer applications and programs may be
loaded
directly via the network 2501. Computer applications and programs are executed
by
double clicking a related icon displayed on the display unit 3006 using one of
the input
devices 3007. The output devices 3010 output the results of operations
performed by the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902. For example, the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 provides the wellness adherence options 3402, 3403,
3404, and
3405 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 34C-34D, to the healthcare recipients
using the
output devices 3010. The wellness adherence tracking system 2900 displays the
wellness
adherence options 3402, 3403, 3404, and 3405 using the output devices 3010.
[0169] The processor 3001 executes an operating system, for example, the Linux
operating system, the Unix operating system, any version of the Microsoft
Windows
operating system, the Mac OS of Apple Inc., the IBM OS/2, VxWorks of Wind
River
Systems, Inc., QNX Neutrino developed by QNX Software Systems Ltd., Palm OS ,
the Solaris operating system developed by Sun Microsystems, Inc., the Android
operating
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system, the Windows Phone operating system of Microsoft Corporation, the
BlackBerry operating system of BlackBerry Limited, the iOS operating system
of Apple
Inc., the SymbianTM operating system of Symbian Foundation Limited, etc. The
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 employs the operating system for performing
multiple
tasks. The operating system is responsible for management and coordination of
activities
and sharing of resources of the wellness adherence tracking system 2900. The
operating
system further manages security of the wellness adherence tracking system
2900,
peripheral devices connected to the wellness adherence tracking system 2900,
and
network connections. The operating system employed on the wellness adherence
tracking
system 2900 recognizes, for example, inputs provided by the users using one of
the input
devices 3007, the output display, files, and directories stored locally on the
fixed media
drive 3008. The operating system on the wellness adherence tracking system
2900
executes different programs using the processor 3001. The processor 3001 and
the
operating system together define a computer system for which application
programs in
high level programming languages are written.
[0170] The processor 3001 of the user device 2901 retrieves instructions
defined by the
scanner 2903, the decoder 2904, the data extraction module 2905, the data
rendering
module 2906, the data reception module 2907, the analytic engine 2908, the
data logger
2909, the alert notification module 2910, etc., for performing respective
functions
disclosed in the detailed description of FIG. 29. The processor 3001 of the
backend server
2502 of the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 retrieves instructions
defined by the
analytic engine 2914 for performing associated functions disclosed in the
detailed
description of FIG. 29. The processor 3001 retrieves instructions for
executing the
modules, for example, 2903, 2904, 2905, 2906, 2907, 2908, 2909, 2910, etc., of
the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 from the memory unit 3002. A
program
counter determines the location of the instructions in the memory unit 3002.
The program
counter stores a number that identifies the current position in the program of
each of the
modules, for example, 2903, 2904, 2905, 2906, 2907, 2908, 2909, 2910, etc., of
the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902. The instructions fetched by the
processor
3001 from the memory unit 3002 after being processed are decoded. The
instructions are
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stored in an instruction register in the processor 3001. After processing and
decoding, the
processor 3001 executes the instructions, thereby performing one or more
processes
defined by those instructions.
[0171] At the time of execution, the instructions stored in the instruction
register are
examined to determine the operations to be performed. The processor 3001 then
performs
the specified operations. The operations comprise arithmetic operations and
logic
operations. The operating system performs multiple routines for performing a
number of
tasks required to assign the input devices 3007, the output devices 3010, and
memory for
execution of the modules, for example, 2903, 2904, 2905, 2906, 2907, 2908,
2909, 2910,
etc., of the wellness adherence tracking application 2902. The tasks performed
by the
operating system comprise, for example, assigning memory to the modules, for
example,
2903, 2904, 2905, 2906, 2907, 2908, 2909, 2910, etc., of the wellness
adherence tracking
application 2902, and to data used by the wellness adherence tracking
application 2902,
moving data between the memory unit 3002 and disk units, and handling
input/output
operations. The operating system performs the tasks on request by the
operations and
after performing the tasks, the operating system transfers the execution
control back to
the processor 3001. The processor 3001 continues the execution to obtain one
or more
outputs. The outputs of the execution of the modules, for example, 2903, 2904,
2905,
2906, 2907, 2908, 2909, 2910, etc., of the wellness adherence tracking
application 2902
are displayed to the healthcare recipient on the display unit 3006.
[0172] For purposes of illustration, the detailed description refers to the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 being run locally as a single computer
system;
however the scope of the method and the wellness adherence tracking system
2900
disclosed herein is not limited to the wellness adherence tracking application
2902 being
run locally as a single computer system via the operating system and the
processor 3001,
but may be extended to run remotely over the network 2501 by employing a web
browser
and a remote server, a mobile phone, or other electronic devices. One or more
portions of
the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 may be distributed across one or
more
computer systems (not shown) coupled to the network 2501.
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[0173] Disclosed herein is also a computer program product comprising a non-
transitory computer readable storage medium that stores computer program codes
comprising instructions executable by at least one processor 3001 for tracking
wellness
adherence of a healthcare recipient. The computer program product comprises a
first
computer program code for scanning an identifier code 123a of a medical
implement
2913 via a graphical user interface (GUI) 2911; a second computer program code
for
decoding and validating the scanned identifier code 123a; a third computer
program code
for obtaining medical information associated with the medical implement 2913
and/or an
activity associated with the medical implement 2913 from the decoded and
validated
identifier code 123a, and/or the wellness adherence criteria; a fourth
computer program
code for rendering the medical information and multiple wellness adherence
options on
the GUI 2911; a fifth computer program code for receiving inputs for one or
more of the
rendered wellness adherence options from the healthcare recipient's user
device 2901;
and a sixth computer program code for logging the received inputs in
association with the
wellness adherence criteria in the user device 2901 and/or one or more
databases, for
example, the wellness adherence database 2915 exemplarily illustrated in FIG.
29, to
track the wellness adherence of the healthcare recipient. The computer program
product
disclosed herein further comprises a seventh computer program code for
transmitting
alert notifications on the GUI 2911 based on the alerting criteria disclosed
in the detailed
description of FIG. 27 and FIG. 29. The computer program product disclosed
herein
further comprises an eighth computer program code for dynamically analyzing
the
medical information with historical data and trends and predicting future
medical
information and planned actionable tasks and outcomes as disclosed in the
detailed
description of FIG. 28.
[0174] The computer program product disclosed herein further comprises one or
more
additional computer program codes for performing additional steps that may be
required
and contemplated for tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient. In
an
embodiment, a single piece of a computer program code comprising computer
executable
instructions performs one or more steps of the method disclosed herein for
tracking
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wellness adherence of the healthcare recipient. The computer program codes
comprising
computer executable instructions are embodied on the non-transitory computer
readable
storage medium. The processor 3001 retrieves these computer executable
instructions and
executes them. When the computer executable instructions are executed by the
processor
3001, the computer executable instructions cause the processor 3001 to perform
the steps
of the method for tracking wellness adherence of the healthcare recipient.
[0175] FIG. 31 exemplarily illustrates a tracker card 3100 with identifier
codes 3101
and 3102 and stickers 3103, 3104, 3105, 3106, 3107, and 3108 containing
identifier
codes 123a that can be positioned on a medical implement 2913 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 29, for tracking wellness adherence of a healthcare recipient. The
tracker card 3100
with the identifier codes 3101 and 3102 and the stickers 3103, 3104, 3105,
3106, 3107,
and 3108 is provided to a healthcare recipient along with the medication
organizer tray
apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B. A
healthcare
provider can also send the tracker card 3100 with the identifier codes 3101
and 3102 and
the stickers 3103, 3104, 3105, 3106, 3107, and 3108 to the healthcare
recipient along
with the medication organizer tray apparatus 100, for example, through mail,
or send the
tracker card 3100 to the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 via the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29. The
identifier
codes 3101 and 3102 on the tracker card 3100 are used for tracking activities
such as
exercise and meditation respectively that are not associated with the
medication organizer
tray apparatus 100 or another medical implement 2913. For these activities,
the
healthcare recipient can scan the identifier code 3101 or 3102 corresponding
to the
activity performed on the tracker card 3100 using the scanner 2903 of the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, after
performing
the activity based on the time scheduled in the wellness adherence tracking
application
2902.
[0176] As exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 31, the tracker card 3100 comprises
a blank
identifier code sticker 3103 with an identifier code, for example, FX85694 to
enable the
healthcare recipient to track an activity performed on any medical implement
2913 or to
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obtain reminders to perform the activity by affixing the blank identifier code
sticker 3103
on any medical implement 2913. When the healthcare recipient scans the blank
identifier
code FX85694 using the scanner 2903 of the wellness adherence tracking
application
2902, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 provides an option to
the
healthcare recipient to enter information to create a reminder to keep track
of the medical
implement 2913 via the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911 exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 29, and adds the information entered by the healthcare recipient to the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29. The
healthcare
recipient can affix the sticker 3104 to corresponding medical implements 2913,
for
example, a parenteral device 3302 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 33C, an
exercise bike, a
yoga mat, a meditation application, an eye drops vial which can be
refrigerated, etc., to
track and log wellness adherence of the healthcare recipient with respect to
these medical
implements 2913, receive promotional messages, etc. The healthcare recipient
can affix
the stickers 3105, 3106, 3107, and 3108 to corresponding medical implements
2913, for
example, an insulin injection package, an inhaler, a blood pressure meter, and
a glucose
meter respectively, to track and log the wellness adherence of the healthcare
recipient
with respect to these medical implements 2913. In an embodiment, the
identifier codes
3101 and 3102 are static identifier codes that do not change over a period of
time unless a
new set of codes are electronically mailed or mailed to an address of the
healthcare
recipient. For example, a sticker used for the exercise bike contains a static
identifier
code. In another embodiment, the stickers 3105, 3106, 3107, and 3108 comprise
dynamic
identifier codes that change over a period of time, for example, on a weekly
basis or a
monthly basis. For example, a sticker 3106 used for inhaler instructions
changes on a
monthly basis.
[0177] The healthcare recipient may have other medical implements 2913 with
different identifier codes 123a that are not included in the tracker card
3100, which can
also be linked to the wellness adherence tracking application 2902. When the
healthcare
recipient scans the identifier code 123a on another medical implement 2913,
the wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 determines whether the identifier code is
a known
identifier code or an unknown identifier code. If the wellness adherence
tracking
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application 2902 does not recognize the identifier code and deems the
identifier code as
unknown, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 transmits the
identifier code
123a to the backend server 2502 of the wellness adherence tracking system 2900
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29. The backend server 2502 retrieves medical
information associated with the identifier code 123a of the medical implement
2913 from
one or more public databases 2916 via the network 2501 exemplarily illustrated
in FIG.
29, and adds secure and credible medical information of the identifier code
123a to the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902. In an embodiment, the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 prompts the healthcare recipient to enter reminder
information
via the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911 for creation of reminders
associated with the
newly added medical implements 2913. If the content of the medical information
retrieved by the backend server 2502 from one or more public databases 2916
appears
suspect, the backend server 2502 sends an alert to the wellness adherence
tacking
application 2902 warning the healthcare recipient of a contaminated identifier
code and to
be aware of a potential malicious attack.
[0178] In an embodiment, when the healthcare recipient scans an identifier
code 123a
positioned on a new medical implement 2913 for which there was no
corresponding
identifier code 123a in the tracker card 3100, the backend server 2502 of the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 receives the medical information encoded in the
scanned
identifier code 123a from the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 via
the
network 2501 and correlates features and functions of the new medical
implement 2913
with the healthcare recipient's health, wellness, and adherence requirements,
and
transmits specific wellness adherence criteria optimal for the healthcare
recipient based
on the healthcare recipient's current real time state of health and wellness
metrics. In an
embodiment, the identifier code 123a and associated medical information for
the newly
added medical implement 2913 is included in an updated tracker card 3100
issued to the
healthcare recipient.
[0179] In an embodiment, when the wellness adherence tracking application 2902
scans and decodes the identifier code 123a positioned on the new medical
implement
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2913 for which there was no corresponding identifier code in the tracker card
3100, the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 searches for two codes, that is,
the
authentication code and the healthcare recipient code as disclosed in the
detailed
description of FIG. 27. If these codes are not found in the scanned and
decoded identifier
code 123a, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 reviews the
content of the
decoded identifier code 123a. If there is no content in the decoded identifier
code 123a,
that is, if the decoded identifier code 123a is a blank identifier code, the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 displays a screen on the graphical user
interface
(GUI) 2911 where the healthcare recipient can enter specific information about
the
medical implement 2913 and how, when, frequency, etc., they plan to use the
medical
implement 2913. Once this information is entered, the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 transmits the new identifier code 123a along with the entered
information specific to the medical implement 2913 and its use to the backend
server
2502 via the network 2501 for registration and further processing. The backend
server
2502 processes and correlates this transmitted information with a similar
medical
implement to confirm that there is not duplication or overlap.
[0180] If there is a similar medical implement stored in the wellness
adherence
database 2915 in the backend server 2502 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29,
the backend
server 2502 sends a notification to the wellness adherence tracking
application 2902 to
inform the healthcare recipient of the duplicate medical implement and
requests the
healthcare recipient to indicate which is the dominant medical implement and
if the other
medical implements are inactive. If the other medical implements are inactive,
the
statuses of those specific medical implements are updated to an inactive
status in the
wellness adherence database 2915. If the medical implement 2913 is new, the
backend
server 2502 registers the new medical implement 2913 and stores the associated
medical
information in the wellness adherence database 2915. The backend server 2502
integrates
the medical information of the medical implement 2913 with the other medical
implements such that the recipient is not alerted or pinged constantly and
that a cohesive
message instead of a fragmented device by device message is passed to the
healthcare
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recipient upon a trigger from the medical implement 2913, the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902, or the backend server 2502.
[0181] In an embodiment where the medical implement 2913 has its own
identifier
code 123a which leads to a corresponding manufacturer's website, the wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 connects to the manufacturer's website and
determines whether there is a match in the wellness adherence database 2915
for that
particular manufacturer's website from previously received identifier codes
from other
recipients or whether the manufacturer is a registered entity. If there is a
match, the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 extracts the medical information
of the
medical implement 2913 and auto-populates from the wellness adherence database
2915.
If the identifier code 123a and the associated medical information appear
suspect, the
backend server 2502 sends an alert notification to the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 warning the healthcare recipient of the contaminated
identifier code and
to be aware of a potential malicious attack. These contaminated identifier
codes are
stored in the wellness adherence database 2915, and if such a contaminated
identifier
code on the same or another medical implement 2913 is uploaded in the future
from the
same or another healthcare recipient's user device 2901, the wellness
adherence tracking
application 2902 searches the wellness adherence database 2915 at the backend
server
2502 via the network 2501 and recognizes these contaminated identifier codes
as
malicious identifier codes and alerts the healthcare recipient.
[0182] The backend server 2502 dynamically assesses the healthcare recipient's
health,
wellness, and adherence requirements and updates the wellness adherence
criteria for
specific impacted medical implements. For example, if the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 triggers a reminder for a medical implement 2913 to measure
blood
pressure and detects high blood pressure from the measured values entered by
the
healthcare recipient via the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911 of the
wellness adherence
tracking application 2902 or from measured values automatically sent at
random, via
triggers, or upon availability via a wireless medical implement, in
communication with
the backend server 2502 via the network 2501, the wellness adherence tracking
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application 2902 may prompt the healthcare recipient to measure his/her weight
which
was not part of the original wellness adherence criteria via the GUI 2911. In
an
embodiment, the backend server 2502 transmits updated instructions to medical
implements 2913 that are in operable communication with the backend server
2502 or
another associated server via the network 2501 to alert the healthcare
recipient, for
example, through an alarm on the user device 2901 exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 29.
[0183] FIG. 32 exemplarily illustrates a tabular representation of data size
allocation in
an identifier code 123a exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29 and FIG. 31. The
identifier
code 123a contains encrypted alphanumeric data with a data size allocation as
exemplarily illustrated in the table in FIG. 32. The identifier code 123a is
encrypted and
does not contain personal health information of a healthcare recipient which
links a
medication to the healthcare recipient, when the identifier code 123a is
scanned by
another individual using the wellness adherence tracking application 2902
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29, downloaded on a user device of the other individual.
The identifier
code 123a is configured to store, that is, accommodate data or medical
information of, for
example, about 1147 characters. However, if there are fewer characters, the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29, generates
an identifier
code 123a with a fewer number of rows and columns. In an embodiment, the
identifier
code 123a can hold, for example, about 70 rows and about 70 columns for a
total of
about 4296 characters with error correction set to low, which allows about one
third of
the medical information to be available. The identifier code 123a stores, for
example,
about 10 characters for a date of administration of a medication, about 10
characters for a
dose time, about 30 characters for a name of the healthcare recipient, about 2
characters
for the total number of medications, about 400 characters for names of
medications stored
in a medication bin, about 75 characters for a motivational message, about 200
characters
for an award message, about 100 characters for promotional messages, about 100
characters for instructions on how to administer the medication, about 20
characters for
an encrypted identification number, and about 200 characters for a sticker
type expansion
as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 32.
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[0184] FIGS. 33A-33D exemplarily illustrate identifier codes 123a
positioned on
different medical implements. The medical implements comprise, for example, a
medication bin 102 configured to store one or more medications 112 as
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 33A, a medical identification card 3301 as exemplarily
illustrated in
FIG. 33B, a parenteral device 3302 such as an inhaler as exemplarily
illustrated in FIG.
33C or an injection, a fitness device or a fitness accessory such as a wrist
band 3303 as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 33D, a medical wellness plan, etc. In an
embodiment, the
identifier code 123a is, for example, affixed using an adhesive or printed on
a bottom
surface 106b, that is, on an inner side of the customized bin label 106 that
seals the
medication bin 102 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 33A. When the identifier
code 123a
is positioned on the bottom surface 106b of the customized bin label 106, the
healthcare
recipient can pull a top edge 106a, for example, a tab of the customized bin
label 106 to
access the identifier code 123a. In another embodiment, the identifier code
123a is
positioned on a right side lower corner of the medical identification card
3301. The
healthcare recipient scans the identifier code 123a positioned on the bottom
surface 106b
of the customized bin label 106, on the medical identification card 3301, on
the inhaler
3302, or on the wrist band 3303 using the scanner 2903 of the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 on the healthcare recipient's user device 2901
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29, to track wellness adherence of the healthcare
recipient.
[0185] In an embodiment, the medication organizer tray apparatus 100
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS. 2A-2B, may or may not have the electronic
identification component 103 embedded into the support frame 101 of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1A, which is
configured to
carry an identifier (ID). In this embodiment, the identifier code 123a which
identifies the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100 will be positioned on the cover jacket
2001 of
the medication organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS.
20A-20C.
The healthcare recipient scans the identifier code 123a using the scanner 2903
of the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902, to confirm that the medication
organizer
tray apparatus 100 is for a correct week and a correct healthcare recipient.
In an
embodiment, when the medical information about one or more medications 112,
for
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example, nutraceuticals, parenterals, etc., is not listed in the pill station
manager
application 2504 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 25, or when the medical
information and
alarm schedule for the medications 112 in the medication organizer tray
apparatus 100 is
absent, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 scans two dimensional
(2D)
barcodes 123b exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 15B, of the medications 112 in
the
medication organizer tray apparatus 100, and extracts the medical information
associated
with the medications 112 or receives the medical information from the
healthcare
recipient, and loads the medical information into the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 and the pill station manager application 2504.
[0186] FIGS.
34A-34E exemplarily illustrate screenshots of a graphical user interface
(GUI) 2911 provided by the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 of the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 on a healthcare recipient's user device 2901
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29, for tracking wellness adherence of the healthcare
recipient. FIG.
34A exemplarily illustrates the GUI 2911, for example, a dashboard of the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 deployed on the healthcare recipient's
user device
2901. FIG. 34A exemplarily illustrates multiple interface elements such as
buttons or
icons named, for example, as "My Day", "My Meds", "My Activity", "My Health",
"My
Contacts", "Scan", etc., that the wellness adherence tracking application 2902
renders to
the healthcare recipient for tracking wellness adherence of the healthcare
recipient. Using
the "Scan" interface element 3401 of the wellness adherence tracking
application 2902,
the healthcare recipient scans identifier codes 123a and 123b positioned on a
medical
implement 2913 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29. When the healthcare
recipient
activates the "Scan" interface element 3401 by tapping the "Scan" interface
element
3401, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 allows the healthcare
recipient to
focus a camera lens of the user device 2901 on the identifier codes 123a and
123b as
exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 34B. When the healthcare recipient focuses the
camera
lens of the user device 2901 on the identifier codes 123a and 123b, the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 scans the identifier codes 123a and 123b
and
decodes the scanned identifier codes 123a and 123b to obtain medical
information
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associated with the medical implement 2913, an activity associated with the
medical
implement 2913, and/or the wellness adherence criteria.
[0187] When
the healthcare recipient scans the identifier codes 123a and 123b and the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 determines that the identifier
codes 123a
and 123b are valid and obtains the medical information from the identifier
codes 123a
and 123b, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 renders wellness
adherence
options comprising, for example, an "administered" option 3402, a "not
administered"
option 3403, a time settings option 3404, and an "absence of a medication"
option 3405,
that are configured in accordance with the wellness adherence criteria as
exemplarily
illustrated in FIGS. 34C-34D. For medications 112 exemplarily illustrated in
FIG. 1B,
that need to be taken after a few hours, the healthcare recipient can schedule
a time using
the time settings option 3404 on the GUI 2911, which reminds the healthcare
recipient at
the scheduled time to consume the medications 112. If the healthcare recipient
after being
sent a reminder has not cleared the time settings option 3404, then the
wellness adherence
tracking application 2902 determines that consumption of the medications 112
in the
medical implement 2913, that is, the medication bin 102 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG.
33A, or any other activity associated with the medical implement 2913 has not
been
completed. When the time settings option 3404 is not cleared, the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 enables the healthcare recipient to select the
"administered"
option 3402 after consuming the medication 112, till a predefined time period
of, for
example, about four hours after the initial reminder. For example, when the
healthcare
recipient has not consumed a medication 112 and selected the time settings
option 3404,
that is, snoozed the activity of consuming the medication 112, then the
wellness
adherence tracking application 2902 enables the healthcare recipient to select
the
administered option 3402 once he/she consumes the medication 112, till about
four hours
after the snooze. Some medications 112 that remain in the medication bin 102
need to be
taken a few hours later than the other medications 112 in the medication bin
102. The
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 does not disable reminders for
unchecked,
that is, not administered medications and triggers a reminder at a selected
time.
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[0188] When
the healthcare recipient scans the identifier codes 123a and 123b and the
wellness adherence tracking application 2902 determines that the identifier
codes 123a
and 123b are valid and obtains the medical information, the wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 renders a medical information window on the graphical user
interface
(GUI) 2911 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 34E, for allowing the healthcare
recipient
to view the medical information and/or for receiving additional medical
information
and/or wellness adherence criteria from the healthcare recipient via the GUI
2911. The
medical information that the healthcare recipient enters on the GUI 2911
comprises, for
example, a type of medication, a type of the medical implement 2913 such as a
medication bin 102 or a parenteral device 3302 such as an inhaler exemplarily
illustrated
in FIG. 33C, dosage information, frequency of administration, a reminder type,
etc.
[0189] Consider an example where a healthcare recipient wants to consume
medications 112, for example, pills from a medication bin 102 of the
medication
organizer tray apparatus 100 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1C and FIGS.
2A-2B.
The healthcare recipient invokes the wellness adherence tracking application
2902
installed on the healthcare recipient's user device 2901 exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29.
The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 renders a dashboard, for
example, a
home screen on the graphical user interface (GUI) 2911 comprising the "Scan"
interface
element 3401 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 34A. In this example, an
identifier code
123a is positioned on the bottom surface 106b of the customized bin label 106
that seals
the medication bin 102 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 33A. The healthcare
recipient lifts
the top edge 106a of the customized bin label 106 to reveal the identifier
code 123a, for
example, a quick response (QR) code. The healthcare recipient positions
his/her user
device 2901 such that a camera lens in his/her user device 2901 focuses on the
identifier
code 123a and then taps on the "Scan" interface element 3401 to scan the
identifier code
123a in focus as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 34B. The wellness adherence
tracking
application 2902 scans the identifier code 123a to determine presence of
medical
information in the identifier code 123a. When the wellness adherence tracking
application 2902 determines the presence of the medical information in the
identifier
code 123a, the wellness adherence tracking application 2902 extracts the
medical
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information from the scanned identifier code 123a to display names of contents
3406, for
example, pills contained in the medication bin 102 as exemplarily illustrated
in FIG. 34C.
[0190] The wellness adherence tracking application 2902 renders the
contents 3406
and multiple wellness adherence options 3402, 3403, 3404, 3405, etc., and by
default
displays, for example, a check mark for each medication 112 in the medication
bin 102
indicating that the healthcare recipient has consumed each pill stored in the
medication
bin 102 as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 34C. However, if the healthcare
recipient has
not consumed each of the pills stored in the medication bin 102, the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 allows the healthcare recipient to manually uncheck
the
unconsumed pills by selecting the "not administered" option 3403 on the
graphical user
interface (GUI) 2911. When the healthcare recipient consumes these unconsumed
medications 112 in the medication bin 102 at a later time, he/she can manually
select the
"administered" option 3402 to indicate administration of the medications 112.
When the
healthcare recipient decides to take the medications 112 at a later time of a
day, he/she
can select the time settings option 3404 to indicate rescheduling of time for
the
administration of the medications 112. When the healthcare recipient does not
have one
or more of the medications 112, he/she can select the "absence of medication"
option
3405 to indicate missing medications 112.
[0191] On receiving inputs for the wellness adherence options 3402, 3403,
3404, or
3405 from the healthcare recipient, the wellness adherence tracking
application 2902 logs
the selections and compares the selections and time of each selection that
indicates time
of consumption of a pill, with the wellness adherence criteria, for example, a
medication
regimen prescribed by a healthcare provider to the healthcare recipient. If
the comparison
yields a positive match for each of the medications 112 consumed based on one
or more
adherence parameters comprising, for example, a prescribed quantity of pills
to be
consumed, a prescribed time of day of consumption of the pills, a prescribed
method of
consuming the pills, etc., the wellness adherence tracking application 2902
confirms the
wellness adherence of the healthcare recipient. In an embodiment, the wellness
adherence
tracking application 2902 renders the medical information and/or the wellness
adherence
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criteria exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 34E, when the healthcare recipient
taps on the
"more information" interface element 3407 exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 34C-
34D.
[0192] It will be readily apparent that the various methods, algorithms, and
computer
programs disclosed herein may be implemented on computer readable media
appropriately programmed for computing devices. As used herein, "computer
readable
media" refers to non-transitory computer readable media that participate in
providing
data, for example, instructions that may be read by a computer, a processor or
a similar
device. Non-transitory computer readable media comprise all computer readable
media,
for example, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media,
except for a
transitory, propagating signal. Non-volatile media comprise, for example,
optical discs or
magnetic disks and other persistent memory volatile media including a dynamic
random
access memory (DRAM), which typically constitutes a main memory. Volatile
media
comprise, for example, a register memory, a processor cache, a random access
memory
(RAM), etc. Transmission media comprise, for example, coaxial cables, copper
wire,
fiber optic cables, modems, etc., including wires that constitute a system bus
coupled to a
processor, etc. Common forms of computer readable media comprise, for example,
a
floppy disk, a flexible disk, a hard disk, magnetic tape, a laser disc, a Blu-
ray Disc of the
Blu-ray Disc Association, any magnetic medium, a compact disc-read only memory
(CD-
ROM), a digital versatile disc (DVD), any optical medium, a flash memory card,
punch
cards, paper tape, any other physical medium with patterns of holes, a random
access
memory (RAM), a programmable read only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable
read only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read only
memory
(EEPROM), a flash memory, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any other
medium
from which a computer can read.
[0193] The computer programs that implement the methods and algorithms
disclosed
herein may be stored and transmitted using a variety of media, for example,
the computer
readable media in a number of manners. In an embodiment, hard-wired circuitry
or
custom hardware may be used in place of, or in combination with, software
instructions
for implementation of the processes of various embodiments. Therefore, the
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embodiments are not limited to any specific combination of hardware and
software. In
general, the computer program codes comprising computer executable
instructions may
be implemented in any programming language. Examples of programming languages
that
can be used comprise C, C++, C#, Java , JavaScript , Fortran, Ruby, Perl ,
Python ,
Visual Basic , hypertext preprocessor (PHP), Microsoft .NET etc. The computer
program codes or software programs may be stored on or in one or more mediums
as
object code. Various aspects of the method and the wellness adherence tracking
system
2900 disclosed herein may be implemented in a non-programmed environment
comprising documents created, for example, in a hypertext markup language
(HTML), an
extensible markup language (XML), or other format that render aspects of a
graphical
user interface (GUI) or perform other functions, when viewed in a visual area
or a
window of a browser program. Various aspects of the method and the wellness
adherence
tracking system 2900 disclosed herein may be implemented as programmed
elements, or
non-programmed elements, or any suitable combination thereof. The computer
program
product disclosed herein comprises one or more computer program codes for
implementing the processes of various embodiments.
[0194] Where databases are described such as the internal application database
2912
and the wellness adherence database 2915 exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 29,
it will be
understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that (i) alternative database
structures to
those described may be readily employed, and (ii) other memory structures
besides
databases may be readily employed. Any illustrations or descriptions of any
sample
databases disclosed herein are illustrative arrangements for stored
representations of
information. Any number of other arrangements may be employed besides those
suggested by tables illustrated in the drawings or elsewhere. Similarly, any
illustrated
entries of the databases represent exemplary information only; one of ordinary
skill in the
art will understand that the number and content of the entries can be
different from those
disclosed herein. Further, despite any depiction of the databases as tables,
other formats
including relational databases, object-based models, and/or distributed
databases may be
used to store and manipulate the data types disclosed herein. Likewise, object
methods or
behaviors of a database can be used to implement various processes such as
those
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disclosed herein. In addition, the databases may, in a known manner, be stored
locally or
remotely from a device that accesses data in such a database. In embodiments
where
there are multiple databases in the wellness adherence tracking system 2900
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29, the databases may be integrated to communicate with
each other
for enabling simultaneous updates of data linked across the databases, when
there are any
updates to the data in one of the databases.
[0195] The method and the wellness adherence tracking system 2900
exemplarily
illustrated in FIG. 29, disclosed herein can be configured to work in a
network
environment comprising one or more computers that are in communication with
one or
more devices via a network. The computers may communicate with the devices
directly
or indirectly, via a wired medium or a wireless medium such as the Internet, a
local area
network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN) or the Ethernet, a token ring, or via
any
appropriate communications mediums or combination of communications mediums.
Each of the devices comprises processors, some examples of which are disclosed
above,
that are adapted to communicate with the computers. In an embodiment, each of
the
computers is equipped with a network communication device, for example, a
network
interface card, a modem, or other network connection device suitable for
connecting to a
network. Each of the computers and the devices executes an operating system,
some
examples of which are disclosed above. While the operating system may differ
depending
on the type of computer, the operating system will continue to provide the
appropriate
communications protocols to establish communication links with the network.
Any
number and type of machines may be in communication with the computers.
[0196] The method and the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 disclosed
herein
are not limited to a particular computer system platform, processor, operating
system, or
network. One or more aspects of the method and the wellness adherence tracking
system
2900 disclosed herein may be distributed among one or more computer systems,
for
example, servers configured to provide one or more services to one or more
client
computers, or to perform a complete task in a distributed system. For example,
one or
more aspects of the method and the wellness adherence tracking system 2900
disclosed
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herein may be performed on a client-server system that comprises components
distributed
among one or more server systems that perform multiple functions according to
various
embodiments. These components comprise, for example, executable, intermediate,
or
interpreted code, which communicate over a network using a communication
protocol.
The method and the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 disclosed herein
are not
limited to be executable on any particular system or group of systems, and are
not limited
to any particular distributed architecture, network, or communication
protocol.
[0197] The foregoing examples have been provided merely for the purpose of
explanation and are in no way to be construed as limiting of the method and
the wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 disclosed herein. While the method and the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 have been described with reference to various
embodiments, it is understood that the words, which have been used herein, are
words of
description and illustration, rather than words of limitation. Further,
although the method
and the wellness adherence tracking system 2900 have been described herein
with
reference to particular means, materials, and embodiments, the method and the
wellness
adherence tracking system 2900 are not intended to be limited to the
particulars disclosed
herein; rather, the method and the wellness adherence tracking system 2900
extend to all
functionally equivalent structures, methods and uses, such as are within the
scope of the
appended claims. Those skilled in the art, having the benefit of the teachings
of this
specification, may effect numerous modifications thereto and changes may be
made
without departing from the scope and spirit of the method and the wellness
adherence
tracking system 2900 disclosed herein in their aspects.
101
