Waste of expensive medicines a thing of the past thanks to new medicine safe

Patients with cystic fibrosis normally receive a new box of medicines every 28 days. Instead of being packaged in a box, the medicines are placed individually in a medicine safe during this pilot. The tablets are also sorted in the safe according to the time they need to be taken. When the patient presses a button, the correct medicine for that time comes out of the safe and can be taken. After 28 days, the safe is exchanged for a newly filled safe.

‘We know that patients do not always take their medicines correctly and at the right time. As a result, medicines are left over and often thrown away or accumulate at the patient's home. Because the Meds Safe keeps the medicines at the right temperature, we can take these medicines back into the pharmacy and give them to the same patient again at the next dispensing. This prevents the patient from having a stock of expensive medicines at home. This gives us insight into the patient's medicine-intake behaviour, allowing us to better guide the patient in their medication use.' says Charlotte Pieters, pharmacist at Erasmus MC.

The re-dispensing of medicines is currently hindered by strict European legislation. Because the medicines from the Meds Safe are returned to the same patient during this pilot, it is done within the legal framework. With the introduction of the pilot and future results, a.s.r. and VGZ want to draw attention to the reuse of medicines at national and European level in the coming years.

Thomas Oremus, director at a.s.r. health confirms the added value of the Meds Safe: ‘The ever-increasing healthcare costs force us to constantly look for smart innovations to keep healthcare accessible. This pilot is a small step, but in the future we ideally want to use the safe for other medicines as well. In this way, we want to manage medicines in a sustainable way together with healthcare professionals and patients.’