Disposable pill counting device

Abstract

A disposable pill system including disposable pill counting tray to hold the a pill, a disposable spatula for use with the disposable pill counting tray, the disposable pill counting tray including a folding side wall to define an area for the pill.

Description

PRIORITY [0001] The present invention claims priority under 35 USC section 119 and provisional application Ser. No. 60 / 676,781 filed on May 2, 2005.FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to health care, and more particularly to a pill counting device and method for using the pill counting device. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Among other things, pharmacies commonly supply pills and other medication in prescription vials for holding their medication after the patients leave the pharmacy and their appointment with the doctor. Some patients when they come to the pharmacy with their prescription scripts are in pain and wish to take their medication immediately in accordance with the doctor's signa which is a Latin term to label the prescription according to dose, route of administration and frequency of use. The only concern of the patients under these circumstances is that the medication will provide some relief from the pain which they suffer and / or...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0014] The present invention eliminates the drug cross-contamination problem in the pharmacy environments. The present invention includes a device and method of pill dispensing in which the pill counting device is disposable. The disposable pill counting device includes a disposable pill counting tray which may have a built-in chute and a disposable spatula for directing the pills into the medication vial.

[0015] By virtue of the fact that the present invention relates to a disposable pill counting device, the present invention is an effective device to prevent the allergic reaction of the patients caused by drug cross-contamination. With the present invention, the patients are assured of receiving substantially pure medication from the pharmacy. It should be understood that the word ‘pill’ can be tablets, capsules or any other suitable type of pill medication which is dispensed as medication by the pharmacy.

[0016] By employing the disposable pill counting tray and disposable spatula the drug cross-contamination and the resulting induced allergies can be avoided. The common medications that induce allergic reactions include antibiotics and some heart disease medications; however, there are many other drugs that can induce the allergic response. Consequently, the present invention is an important contribution to preventing these induced allergies.

[0017] The disposable pill counting tray and the disposable spatula are simpler in construction, cost-effective and more versatile in operation than other pill counting trays and spatulas. The disposable pill counting tray and disposable spatula ensures safety for the patients. The disposable pill counting tray and disposable spatula provides a new and contamination free device for each patient. By virtue of the disposable aspect of the disposable pill counting tray and disposable spatula, these devices can be used once and discarded.

[0018] The disposable pill dispensing device eliminates a drug cross contamination concerns of the community. Consequently, the disposable the dispensing device provides an important contribution and solves the problem of unrecognized allergic reactions.

Problems solved by technology

There is no attempt to prevent the contamination of the next patient's medication by the medication of the previous patient.

However, many patients are allergic to some kinds of medications, and it is possible for the patient's medication to become contaminated with the previous patient's medication and for the patient to sustain a serious allergic reaction without knowledge of the source of the contamination.

The contamination could occur during the filling, counting and dispensing of the patient's medication.

Many patients are not sure if they are allergic to such drugs as penicillin or sulfa drugs.

The only source of such an unidentified allergic reaction is that there has been a cross-contamination and evidenced by the patient's complaints of nausea and vomiting or diarrhea.

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