“One of our patients who tried the consumer version was a mom who wanted to make sure her daughter took her medicine at the correct time, as it was really important. The daughter called Dosell her best friend, because it was so helpful in keeping her on track with her meds.”
With iZafe launching with Apoteket AB in Sweden, it will be simple for consumers to integrate Dosell into their lives. Apoteket pharmacies will prepare the dose packs as a service, where the patient gets the medicine in a roll of sachets – little bags with the daily dosages – which are easily put into the Dosell. It’s as simple as one, two, three and the patient is good to go.
IoT & connectivity
While the iZafe solution for Dosell is simple, it wouldn’t work without IoT and connectivity. Tele2 IoT provides the SIM cards and connectivity that connect Dosell to the app on user’s phones, so that health professionals and family or friends are not only able to monitor the proper dispensation of medication, they can also ensure the correct dosage and even the correct type. This drastically reduces the chance of a patient taking the wrong medication, or the right medication in the wrong dosage or at the wrong time.
“To keep Dosell operating we need connectivity,” says Anders Segerström. “Connectivity is not only what sends the signal/alarm if someone doesn’t take their medication, it also allows us to receive reports and change settings through the backend. We can also identify maintenance issues and send updates. And we have a second backup because if Dosell doesn’t report every second hour as it should, an alarm is sent. With this kind of solution, having reliable connectivity is crucial.”
IZafe manages its SIMs with 2CONTROL (Cisco IoT Control Center), which allows them to see how they’re using data, if there are any special or unusual trends, or if the machine is working in an unusual way.
The data
iZafe aggregates data from Dosell through their own platform, which is hosted on AWS and thus gives them ample possibilities to expand. While all data is securely transferred, not much personal data is saved, other than what is needed to deliver the service.
“We don’t store any data around a specific person,” explains Anders Segerström. “We have data about how people change their behavior by using Dosell, but that does not include personal details. But having the data around behavior will be a big plus for companies like Apoteket, who will be able to see which medicines people are taking, how they are taking it, such as the right time, etc., and that data will be important in helping them understand what happens if a patient takes their meds 100% as prescribed or if they don’t. It will no longer be anecdotal information, but confirmed data, which will help with research and help improve healthcare services, which is the ultimate goal when we digitalize healthcare: it must get better, and this kind of data will contribute to that.”
As digitized healthcare products become part of a larger digital healthcare ecosystem, data from things like heart rate, blood pressure, med compliance, and other markers will combine to give a fuller picture to healthcare providers with less costs – and data will contribute to and back up decision-making, as well as research and other parameters within healthcare.
“Digital online doctors can look right on the screen and see all the data, then analyze and use it to adjust meds and other things based on values they see. This will mean much more precise and will deliver better care, both short and long term – something that is already happening, because digitization of healthcare is well underway.”
The future
iZafe has plans to add a lot of top ups and gamifications in the Dosell app. From their pilot they can see that it is very important for loved ones to see that their mother is taking the medicine, so that function will be improved. They also plan to send updates to patients tell them they have taken their medicine at the right time and well done! Or maybe gently telling them that they have not been taking their meds at the right time, so they should try to get back on track.
“We may also at some point add a second display, so that when we partner with other companies we can integrate easily.”
iZafe is also looking beyond the borders of Sweden, particularly at Europe, but also at the US. The will be sending 5 Dosells to Italy, where they will start their own pilot in order to see and understand the subscription model. With the subscription model, the Dosell solution will be sold through a service called Simply Pharma, where patients go to the local pharmacy and signs a contract for the Simply Pharma service, and then the local pharmacy creates the pill sachets, which will be refilled every second week.
Where competitors have focused on super-advanced solutions, with lots of bells and whistles, so they are complicated and expensive. IZafe has focused on a cost-effective product that is simple to use.
“Somewhere in the future real integration of digitized health needs to happen – and it needs to happen pretty quickly. For us, that means making Dosell extremely easy to integrate so that different parts of digital health can come together in a smooth and effective way. It’s already starting to happen and we’re prepared to be part of the solution.”
If you would like to learn more about how IoT can enable your business, please get in touch.
