Preparation support system

Abstract

To provide a preparation support system capable of improving work efficiency of a preparation task.SOLUTION: A preparation support system 1 is constructed, the preparation support system including a plurality of powdered medicine packing means 3, 4 capable of executing packing processing of discharging powdered medicine packed for each dose on the basis of prescription data. The preparation support system 1 executes the packing processing using one powdered medicine packing means 3, 4 of the plurality of powdered medicine packing means 3, 4, when powdered medicine is prescribed. Before execution of the packing processing, the preparation support system executes distribution operation of determining a powdered medicine packing means 3, 4 to execute the packing processing and, before execution of the packing processing on which distribution is performed by the distribution operation, executes first output operation of outputting information indicating a result of the distribution operation in a state of enabling a user to confirm the information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a dispensing support system for providing medicines to patients in medical facilities such as hospitals, clinics, and dispensing pharmacies, and is particularly a dispensing support system that can suitably support medicine provision operations in large-scale hospitals. [Background technology]

[0002] Traditionally, when providing medication to a patient at a medical facility, a doctor examines the patient and issues a prescription, and dispensing work is carried out based on the issued prescription. More specifically, there are in-hospital prescriptions, where the medication is provided directly at the medical facility where the patient was examined, and out-hospital prescriptions, where the medication is provided at a medical facility outside the medical facility where the patient was examined (such as an outside pharmacy). Relatively large hospitals sometimes use in-hospital prescriptions. In these cases, dispensing work, including preparation of medication (measurement, mixing, packaging into single doses, etc.), inspection, and provision, is carried out by the hospital's pharmacy department (pharmacy division).

[0003] One system that supports such dispensing work is the powder medicine dispensing work support system disclosed in Patent Document 1, which was previously filed by the present applicant (hereinafter simply referred to as the dispensing support system). The dispensing support system of Patent Document 1 is configured to include a powder medicine packaging machine (hereinafter also referred to as a fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine) that can almost completely automate the packaging work of dividing powder medicine into single doses and packaging them. This dispensing support system is capable of packaging using the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine, packaging using a combination of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine and other dispensing equipment, and packaging using other dispensing equipment.

[0004] Here, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine can automatically perform a series of processes, including moving the medicine container from the internal container storage device to the powder medicine discharge location, removing the powder medicine contained in the medicine container, weighing the powder medicine, and dividing the powder medicine into individual packets and packaging them individually. For this reason, packaging performed only by a fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine can reduce the burden on the pharmacist compared to packaging performed using other dispensing equipment.

[0005] Therefore, in the dispensing support system of the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, packaging is given priority, which is performed only by a fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine. Specifically, when the control device receives prescription data, it transmits the data to the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine. The fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine then performs a determination operation to determine whether the prescription included in the prescription data can be processed by itself. If the result of this determination operation shows that the prescription can be processed by the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine alone, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine performs packaging as is. On the other hand, if the prescription cannot be processed by the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine alone, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine resends the data to the control device, and the control device transmits the data to another dispensing device. Then, packaging is performed either by combining the other dispensing device and the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine, or by using the other dispensing device. Furthermore, Patent Document 1 discloses that the discrimination operation performed by the fully automatic powdered medicine dispensing and packaging machine may be performed by a control device. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2016-130972 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] As mentioned above, fully automatic powder medicine packaging machines are popular in the market because they reduce the burden on dispensers. For this reason, their introduction is highly desired in medical facilities that need to process a large number of prescriptions one after another, such as the pharmacy departments of large hospitals.

[0008] When large hospitals introduce fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machines, they often build large-scale dispensing support systems that have a number of packaging machines, including both fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machines and conventional powdered medicine packaging machines, and use one packaging machine selected from the many machines to perform packaging.

[0009] When actually operating such a dispensing support system, once it was determined which dispensing machine would package the drugs corresponding to each prescription data, the pharmacist would look around at the dispensing equipment (dispensing machines, weighing devices, etc.) belonging to the system, identify the dispensing machine assigned to the packaging process, receive individually packaged powdered drugs from the fully automatic powdered drug dispensing machine, or weigh powdered drugs to be put into the conventional powdered drug dispensing machine using a weighing device. Unlike small-scale dispensing support systems, when a large-scale dispensing support system is constructed, many packaging machines and other dispensing equipment are placed over a large site, making it very time-consuming for pharmacists to go around and check the dispensing equipment.

[0010] Therefore, there is a need for a dispensing work support system that, once it has been determined which dispensing device will be used for packaging, outputs the details in a manner that can be visually confirmed by the dispensing staff.

[0011] The present inventors have devised a configuration for such a dispensing operation support system that allows a control device or the like to allocate packaging processes to a plurality of dispensing devices, and then allows the allocation of packaging processes to be changed as necessary. Specifically, in a dispensing operation support system having a first packaging machine and a second packaging machine, it is decided that a drug packaging process based on a predetermined prescription (hereinafter referred to as the first packaging process) will be performed using the first packaging machine. At this time, if many unprocessed packaging processes are accumulated in the first packaging machine, it will take a long time for the first packaging process to be performed by the first packaging machine. Therefore, in such a case, the first packaging process can be canceled and performed by the second packaging machine, thereby speeding up the packaging work of the entire system.

[0012] However, if a configuration is adopted that allows such an operation, it may take time to determine which dispensing machine to use for packaging. That is, there is a possibility that the packaging process will be reassigned one or more times, and in such cases, it may take time to completely determine which dispensing machine to use for packaging. Therefore, if the contents of the packaging are output so that they can be seen by the pharmacist after the dispensing device to be used for packaging has been determined, the problem arises that the initial movement of the pharmacist toward the dispensing device will be slow.

[0013] For these reasons, there has been a demand for a dispensing work support system that can more appropriately support the dispensing work of pharmacists and further improve the efficiency of dispensing work.

[0014] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a dispensing support system that can improve the efficiency of dispensing work. [Means for solving the problem]

[0015] One aspect of the present invention for solving the above problem is a dispensing support system connected to multiple powder medicine packaging means that performs a packaging process to package and discharge single doses of powder medicine based on prescription data, and when a powder medicine is prescribed, an allocation operation is performed to assign the packaging process of the prescribed powder medicine to one of the multiple powder medicine packaging means, and then the packaging process is performed by the assigned powder medicine packaging means, and after performing the allocation operation and before the packaging process is performed, the dispensing support system performs a first output operation to change the powder medicine packaging means assigned by the allocation operation and output the changed powder medicine packaging means in a state that can be confirmed by the user. In a preferred aspect, the dispensing support system according to claim 1, wherein the first output operation outputs an instruction sheet. In a more preferred aspect, the powdered medicine packaging means is a dispensing support system comprising an automatic powdered medicine packaging machine and manual powdered medicine packaging means constituted by a separate medicine weighing device and powdered medicine packaging machine. An even more preferred aspect is a ward information management system to be used in conjunction with the above-mentioned dispensing support system, which comprises a ward information management device and a memory unit, the memory unit having information specifying the ward where the patient of the prescription data is hospitalized or will be hospitalized in the future, and the ward information management device stores in the memory unit, when the patient is transferred to another ward, the ward to which the patient has been transferred as the ward where the patient is currently hospitalized. In a more preferred aspect, the ward information management system further includes a list display device that displays a ward information confirmation screen, which displays information that identifies the patient and information that identifies the ward in which the patient is admitted, and which displays information indicating the ward in which the target patient is admitted at the time the prescription is issued, information indicating the ward in which the target patient is scheduled to be admitted, information indicating the ward in which the target patient is currently admitted, or information indicating the ward in which the target patient is scheduled to be admitted. In an even more preferred aspect, the ward information confirmation screen further has a transport ward display section, and the ward information management system displays information identifying the ward to which the powdered medicine that has been packaged in the dispensing support system has been transported on the transport ward display section.

[0016] In the dispensing support system of this aspect, after the packaging process is assigned by the assignment operation, information indicating the result is output by the first output operation before the assigned packaging process is executed. In other words, the first output operation is executed as soon as possible, regardless of whether the packaging process is actually executed by the powder medicine packaging means to which it is assigned. This makes it possible to quickly provide the dispensing person with information that serves as a guide for the work location of the dispensing work, enabling the dispensing person to quickly rush to the vicinity of the powder medicine packaging means (dispensing device) where the packaging process is scheduled to be executed.

[0017] In the dispensing support system of the above aspect, at least one of the multiple powder medicine packaging means has a transfer function that transfers the packaging process assigned to it to another powder medicine packaging means after the allocation operation is performed, and the allocation operation is an operation that permanently or temporarily determines the powder medicine packaging means that will perform the packaging process, and it is particularly preferable that the determination of the allocation operation is switched when the packaging process is transferred.

[0018] Furthermore, the preferred aspect described above is that the second output operation is executed after the first output operation is executed, and it is more preferable that the second output operation is an operation that outputs information identifying the powder medicine packaging means that actually performed the packaging process in a state that can be confirmed by the user, on the condition that the packaging process assigned to one of the powder medicine packaging means in the allocation operation is executed by one of the powder medicine packaging means and that execution is completed.

[0019] In this more preferred aspect, it is even more preferred that, in the second output operation, information relating to a re-allocation history is output when the packaging process is re-allocated after the sorting operation.

[0020] These configurations are preferable because they allow the pharmacist performing the inspection to accurately grasp the details of the actual drug preparation work (measurement, mixing, packaging, etc.) that has been carried out.

[0021] In the preferred aspect described above, it is more preferable that in the first output operation and the second output operation, information necessary for drug inspection, including information indicating the drug name of the prescribed drug, is output along with information regarding the allocation of the packaging process.

[0022] This configuration is preferable because it makes it difficult for a dispensing technician who prepares a prescription or a pharmacist who performs inspection work to check the output contents while working, as it makes it difficult for them to confuse the prescription being worked on with other prescriptions. It also makes it possible for inspection work to be performed while checking the output contents of the first output operation.

[0023] In the above-described aspect, at least one of the powder medicine packaging means is an automatic powder medicine packaging machine, and at least one other of the powder medicine packaging means is a manual powder medicine packaging means composed of a separate medicine weighing device and powder medicine packaging machine, and the automatic powder medicine packaging machine has an internal container storage unit that stores a plurality of medicine containers containing powder medicine, a distribution tray, and a powder medicine packaging device, and is capable of automatically discharging powder medicine from the medicine containers stored in the container storage unit while weighing it, loading the discharged powder medicine directly or after temporarily storing it in another container from the other container into the distribution tray, and loading the powder medicine from the distribution tray into the powder medicine packaging device one packet at a time for individual packaging, and the medicine weighing device weighs the target medicine, and the powder medicine packaging machine packages and discharges the weighed powder medicine that has been introduced into it in doses, and it is preferable that in the allocation operation, the packaging process be assigned preferentially to the automatic powder medicine packaging machine rather than the manual powder medicine packaging means.

[0024] According to this configuration, packaging processing is preferentially assigned to the automatic powder medicine packaging machine, which places a smaller burden on the dispensing staff, thereby improving the work efficiency of dispensing operations.

[0025] In the preferred aspect described above, it is more preferable that in the allocation operation, the packaging process is assigned based on information about the powdered medicine contained in the medicine container stored in the container storage unit at the time the allocation operation is performed.

[0026] This configuration is preferable because it allows for appropriate sorting operation even if the powder medicine stored in the automatic powder medicine packaging machine is changed as needed.

[0027] In the above-mentioned preferable aspect, it is more preferable that the automatic powder medicine packaging machine has a transfer function for transferring the packaging process assigned to itself to another powder medicine packaging means.

[0028] According to this configuration, the allocation of packaging processes can be changed as appropriate depending on the processing status of the packaging processes of the automatic powdered medicine packaging machine, thereby improving the work efficiency of dispensing work.

[0029] In the above aspect, it is preferable that the first output operation is to print and output information indicating the result of the sorting operation on a paper medium, or to output the information on a display screen of an external mobile terminal.

[0030] According to this configuration, the dispensing staff can carry around the medium or device on which the information is output, which is preferable as it makes dispensing work easier.

[0031] The above-mentioned aspect is preferably such that a medicine bag production operation is possible to produce a medicine bag to which an identification mark is added, the identification mark including identification information capable of identifying the prescription corresponding to the powder medicine contained in the medicine bag, the powder medicine packaging means is equipped with an information reading device capable of reading the identification mark, and when the packaging process for the powder medicine contained in the medicine bag has not been processed, information regarding the prescription corresponding to the powder medicine contained in the medicine bag is identified on the condition that the identification mark has been read by the information reading device, and the identified information is output to a display device in a state that can be confirmed by the user, or the execution of the packaging process for the powder medicine contained in the medicine bag is confirmed.

[0032] With this configuration, when multiple packaging processes assigned to the powder medicine packaging means remain unprocessed and the packaging process for powder medicine to be placed in a medicine bag is identified and executed from among the unprocessed packaging processes, the identification display can be read by the information reading device, making it possible to automatically identify the packaging process. That is, unlike when a dispensing technician manually specifies a packaging process from among unprocessed packaging processes, it is possible to prevent packaging processes from being executed due to operational errors. [Effects of the Invention]

[0033] According to the present invention, the work efficiency of dispensing work can be improved. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0034] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a dispensing support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a host control device in FIG. 1. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the fully automatic powder medicine packing machine of FIG. 1. [Figure 4] 4 is a perspective view showing a medicine feeder formed when powdered medicine is discharged into a distribution tray inside the fully automatic powdered medicine dispensing and packaging machine of FIG. 3. FIG. [Figure 5] 2(a) is a block diagram showing the medicine weighing device of FIG. 1, and FIG. 2(b) is a block diagram showing the powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine of FIG. [Figure 6] 10 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the allocation operation executed by the dispensing support system of FIG. 1, showing the procedure of the operation executed when powdered medicine is included in the prescription. [Figure 7] 1. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an instruction sheet output in the instruction sheet output operation executed by the dispensing support system of FIG. [Figure 8] 2 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of a medicine envelope output in the medicine envelope preparation operation executed by the dispensing support system of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an inspection screen displayed by an inspection screen output operation executed by the dispensing support system of FIG. 1. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating a prescription standby screen displayed on the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine of FIG. 1, showing a state in which information indicating the packaging process whose execution has been confirmed is not displayed. [Figure 11] 1. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an unprocessed list display screen displayed on the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine of FIG. [Figure 12] 1. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing a content confirmation screen displayed on the fully automatic powder medicine packing machine of FIG. [Figure 13] 1. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating a prescription standby screen displayed on the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine of FIG. 1, showing a state in which information indicating packaging processing whose execution has been confirmed is displayed. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a dispensing support system according to an embodiment different from that shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 15] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a ward information management system that can be used in conjunction with the above-described dispensing support system. [Figure 16]FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram for schematically explaining a ward information confirmation screen displayed on the list display device of FIG. 15. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0035] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to these examples. In the following description, "powdered medicine" includes medicines that have been made into powder by grinding solid medicines such as tablets.

[0036] 1, the dispensing support system 1 of this embodiment includes a host control device 2 (control device), a fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 (powder medicine packaging means, automatic powder medicine packaging machine, drug dispensing means, first drug dispensing means), a manual powder medicine packaging means 4 (powder medicine packaging means, drug dispensing means, second drug dispensing means), and an automatic tablet packaging machine 5 (drug dispensing means). The manual powder medicine packaging means 4 is made up of a drug weighing device 6 (powder medicine weighing device) and a powder medicine packaging machine 7. The host controller 2, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3, and the manual powder medicine packaging means 4 are connected to each other via an in-house communication network (LAN) or the like so that they can send and receive data (signals). Similarly, the host controller 2 and the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 are also connected to each other so that they can communicate electrically, and can send and receive data.

[0037] As shown in Figure 2, the upper control device 2 includes a device main body 10, a display device 11 (control side display device) attached to the device main body 10, an input device 12, a printing device 13 (printing means), and a medicine bag making device 14.

[0038] The device main body 10 includes a processing unit 15 such as a CPU, a storage unit 16, and a communication unit 17 such as an I / O port.

[0039] The calculation unit 15 is a part that performs various calculations and generates control signals by reading and executing programs and data stored in the storage unit 16 based on various inputs.

[0040] The storage unit 16 includes a main storage device consisting of a ROM for storing various programs and data, and a RAM for temporarily storing various programs and rewritably storing various data, and is further provided with an auxiliary storage device as needed. Note that the auxiliary storage device may be a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or the like. The storage unit 16 of this embodiment stores programs and data for executing various operations including a distribution operation, which will be described later.

[0041] Specifically, such data (information) stores information (hereinafter also referred to as powder medicine storage information) about the powder medicine contained in each medicine container 30 (see FIG. 3) held in the container storage unit 31 of the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine 3. This powder medicine storage information includes information about the type and amount of powder medicine stored. Also stored is information about tablets, that is, information about tablets contained in tablet cassettes (described in detail later) of the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 and stored in the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 (hereinafter also referred to as tablet storage information). This tablet storage information includes information about the type of tablets stored, as well as information about their shape, number, and weight. Note that the information about shape may also be information about the size of divided tablets (the ratio of the size to one tablet), such as half tablets or quarter tablets.

[0042] In addition, when the powdered medicine storage information (drug container) stored in the container storage section 31 of the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 is changed, the signal sent from the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 is received by the upper control device 2, and an information update process is performed. In addition, the storage unit 16 stores information about prescriptions transmitted from the external PC 20 as prescription data.

[0043] The communication unit 17 has an interface that enables two-way communication with an external device via wire or wirelessly, and is connected to the calculation unit 15 via a transmission path such as a bus. In other words, this communication unit 17 enables the upper control device 2 to send and receive signals with each dispensing device (fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3, manual powdered medicine packaging means 4, automatic tablet packaging machine 5, etc.) belonging to the dispensing support system 1, and with an external PC 20 operated by a doctor.

[0044] The display device 11 is a device that displays the contents of various processes executed by the dispensing support system 1, the status of each dispensing device, etc., and is specifically a display device such as a liquid crystal or organic EL display. The input device 12 is a device used by the user when performing operations on the upper control device 2, and specifically includes a mouse and a keyboard.

[0045] The printing device 13 is a printer that can print and output predetermined information on a paper medium. The medicine bag making device 14 is a medicine bag printer that can make medicine bags by making bags from bag paper and printing predetermined information on the made bags and outputting them. In this embodiment, in addition to normal medicine bags, it is possible to output multiple types of medicine bags such as gusseted medicine bags and transparent medicine bags, and it is possible to output medicine bags of different sizes by selecting the size of each medicine bag.

[0046] As shown in Figure 3, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 is configured with each device built into the inside of a housing 25, and is broadly divided into a medicine shelf area 26, a medicine division area 27, and a medicine packaging area 28.

[0047] A container storage section 31 for placing drug containers 30 is provided in drug shelf area 26. Container storage section 31 has a vertical drum member 31a that can rotate in the circumferential direction, and a plurality of container placement sections 31b are provided on the outer peripheral surface of drum member 31a. For convenience of drawing, in FIG. 3, reference numerals are given to only some of the drug container 30 and container installation section 31b, and reference numerals are omitted for the others.

[0048] The multiple medicine containers 30 stored inside the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 are each capable of individually storing powder medicine. The fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 of this embodiment stores multiple types of powder medicine as a whole, and each of the multiple different types of powder medicine is stored in one or multiple (two to three) medicine containers 30. Specifically, of the multiple types of powder medicine, powder medicines that are dispensed more frequently are stored in multiple medicine containers 30, and powder medicines that are dispensed less frequently are stored in one medicine container 30. Therefore, even if the frequently dispensed powder medicine stored in one medicine container 30 is used up, the same packaging operation can be performed using the same powder medicine stored in another medicine container 30.

[0049] A container moving means 34 is provided in the area from the medicine shelf area 26 to the medicine dividing area 27. The container moving means 34 is a robot.

[0050] Medicine dividing area 27 is an area in which powder medicine dispensing device 37 is built in. Powder medicine dispensing device 37 is provided with two distribution trays 38, a plurality of container mounting devices 39 installed around each of distribution trays 38, and scraping device 40. Note that the configuration is not limited to providing a plurality (two) of distribution trays 38 as in this embodiment, and fully automatic powder medicine packing machine 3 may be made smaller by using only one distribution tray 38. Furthermore, medicine dividing area 27 is provided with a medicine inlet (not shown) for supplying powder medicine to medicine packaging area 28 one packet at a time.

[0051] A medicine packaging device 45 (powder medicine packaging device) is built into the medicine packaging area 28. The medicine packaging device 45 is a machine that packages powder medicine into individual doses, and is composed of a packaging sheet supply device and a sealing device (detailed illustration is omitted).

[0052] The fully automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine 3 is equipped with an internal control unit (automatic machine control unit, not shown). This control unit controls the various operations performed by the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine 3, and like the above-mentioned upper control device 2 (see FIG. 2), an arithmetic unit, a memory unit, and a communication unit are formed by a CPU, a main memory unit, an auxiliary memory unit, an I / O port, etc. The fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 is capable of transmitting and receiving signals to and from the host control device 2 and manual powdered medicine packaging means 4 (medicine weighing device 6, powdered medicine packaging machine 7) via a communication unit (see FIG. 1).

[0053] Furthermore, the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 is equipped with an operation display unit 50 (display device), as shown in Fig. 3. The operation display unit 50 is a touch panel, and serves as both a display device (automatic machine side display device) and an input device (automatic machine side input device).

[0054] Furthermore, the fully automatic powdered medicine packing machine 3 is equipped with an information reading device (not shown). This information reading device is constructed with a recognition device such as a scanner or camera and a program for acquiring information, and the information to be read acquired by the recognition device is input to a control unit (automatic machine control unit), which then executes the program to acquire the information. Specifically, it is a two-dimensional code reader that can acquire information from two-dimensional code 92 (an identification mark, which will be described in detail later, see Figure 8) on medicine bag 90.

[0055] Next, operations that can be performed by the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine 3 will be described.

[0056] The fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 is capable of performing an automatic packaging operation that uses the built-in medicine container 30. The automatic packaging operation is an operation that automatically executes a series of operations including an operation of moving a container (medicine container 30) containing powder medicine from a storage location to a powder medicine removal location, an operation of removing the powder medicine from the container while weighing it, and an operation of dividing the removed powder medicine into single doses and packaging them.

[0057] Specifically, when the automatic packaging operation is started, container moving means 34 takes out drug container 30 from container storage section 31, moves drug container 30 to above container mounting device 39, and places drug container 30 on container mounting device 39. In other words, container moving means 34 holds drug container 30 at the tip of the arm, and can move drug container 30 as is.

[0058] Medicine container 30 is placed on and coupled to container mounting device 39 to form medicine feeder 55 (see FIG. 4). That is, medicine feeder 55 is composed of medicine container 30 and container mounting device 39, which are separate and separable components. Fully automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine 3 of this embodiment uses medicine feeder 55 to feed powder medicine into distribution tray 38.

[0059] That is, with drug feeder 55 formed, a constant frequency current is passed through vibration means 56 of container mounting device 39 to generate vibration, vibrating vibration table 57. Also, around the time the vibration starts, distribution tray 38 is rotated, and the weight of drug container 30 is measured by weight measuring means (not shown) of container mounting device 39.

[0060] When the vibrating table 57 starts vibrating, the medicine container 30 vibrates, and the powdered medicine stored inside the medicine container 30 moves toward the medicine discharge section 58, reaches the medicine discharge section 58 of the medicine container 30, and is dropped into the groove of the distribution dish 38 located below the medicine discharge section 58. The drug discharge section 58 is composed of an opening that communicates between the inside and outside of the drug container 30 and a lid that can be opened and closed. The lid of the drug discharge section 58 is opened and closed by the container moving means 34, and is set in an open state when the drug container is installed on the container mounting device 39, and is set in a closed state when the drug container is removed from the container mounting device 39.

[0061] While the powdered medicine is falling from medicine discharge section 58 onto distribution tray 38, the current weight (current weight g) of medicine container 30 is continuously monitored by the weight measuring means of container mounting device 39. Then, by comparing original weight G, which is the weight of medicine container 30 immediately after placement on vibration table 57, with current weight g, the amount of powdered medicine that has fallen H (a value obtained by subtracting current weight g from original weight G) is constantly calculated and obtained. Then, when the amount H of powdered medicine falling reaches a desired weight, the vibration of vibration table 57 is stopped. Thereafter, medicine container 30 is returned to container storage section 31 by container moving means .

[0062] When multiple powdered medications are prescribed and are to be mixed and packaged, the above-described operation is performed on multiple medication containers 30. In this case, multiple medication containers 30 are placed on separate container mounting devices 39, and the powdered medication from each medication container 30 is poured into distribution tray 38. In this embodiment, powdered medication can be poured simultaneously from three medication containers 30 into one distribution tray 38. Furthermore, if the number of powdered medications to be mixed exceeds the number of available container mounting devices 39, the discharge of powdered medication from one medication container 30 is completed, and the medication container 30 is returned to the container storage unit 31. After that, another medication container 30 is placed on the empty container mounting device 39 and the powdered medication is discharged. Once all the powdered medicines to be mixed have been placed in the distribution tray 38, part of the scraping device 40 is placed in the groove of the distribution tray 38, and the distribution tray 38 is rotated by a predetermined angle to collect a certain amount of powdered medicine around the scraping device 40, which is then scraped out of the distribution tray 38 and introduced into the medicine packaging area 28. The medicine is then packaged into individual doses by the medicine packaging device 45.

[0063] As shown in FIG. 5( a ), the medicine weighing device 6 has a weighing device main body 60 , and a weighing-side reading device 61 and a printing device 62 attached to the weighing device main body 60 .

[0064] The weighing device main body 60 includes a weighing-side control section 65 , a balance unit 66 , a weighing-side operation display section 67 , an information reading / writing means 68 , and a USB port 69 .

[0065] Weighing-side control unit 65 is a control unit that controls various operations performed by drug weighing device 6, and similar to the above-described upper control device 2 (see FIG. 2), has a calculation unit, a memory unit, and a communication unit formed by a CPU, a main memory device, an auxiliary memory device, an I / O port, etc. The memory unit stores weighing-related data that does not change and a program that operates drug weighing device 6.

[0066] The balance unit 66 is formed to include a balance table, a balancing circuit, a force coil, etc., similar to those employed in known electronic balances. That is, it is a weighing means that can weigh a drug placed on a weighing container (not shown) by placing the drug in the weighing container while the weighing container is placed on the balance table.

[0067] The weighing-side operation display unit 67 is a touch panel, and serves as both a display device (weighing-side display device) and an input device (weighing-side input device). The information reading / writing means 68 is a reader / writer capable of reading and writing information from and to an information storage medium (RFID tag or IC tag) provided in a weighing container (not shown) or the like. A USB memory that functions as a storage medium can be attached / detached to USB port 69. That is, this medicine weighing device 6 is capable of reading data related to medicines handled in dispensing operations from a USB memory.

[0068] Weighing-side reading device 61 is an information reading device that reads information from codes (signs or codes, such as barcodes) attached to medicine bottles, prescriptions, etc., and is constructed by a recognition device and a program for acquiring information, similar to the information reading device of the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine 3 described above. That is, the information to be read, acquired by the recognition device, is input to weighing-side control unit 65, and weighing-side control unit 65 executes the program to acquire the information. Specifically, it is a barcode reader that can obtain the JAN code (or RSS) from the barcode attached to a medicine bottle, and can also read information from barcodes attached to prescriptions, etc.

[0069] The printing device 62 is a printer that can print and output various types of information on paper media.

[0070] 5(b), powder medicine packaging machine 7 has a packaging machine-side control unit 73, a packaging machine-side operation display unit 74, a powder medicine dispensing device 75, a medicine packaging device 76, a supply hopper 77, and information reading / writing means 78. Powder medicine dispensing device 75, medicine packaging device 76, and information reading / writing means 78 are substantially the same as powder medicine dispensing device 37, medicine packaging device 45, and information reading / writing means 68 described above, and therefore, redundant detailed explanations will be omitted.

[0071] The packaging machine side control unit 73 is a control unit that controls the various operations performed by the powder medicine packaging machine 7, and similar to the above-mentioned upper control device 2 (see Figure 2), an arithmetic unit, a memory unit, and a communication unit are formed by a CPU, a main memory device, an auxiliary memory device, an I / O port, etc.

[0072] The packaging machine operation display unit 74 is a touch panel, and serves both as a display device (packaging machine display device) and an input device (packaging machine input device).

[0073] The supply hopper 77 is a portion that serves as an inlet for feeding weighed powdered medicine into the powdered medicine dispensing device 75.

[0074] As described above, in the dispensing support system 1 of this embodiment, the manual powder medicine packaging means 4 is made up of the medicine weighing device 6 and the powder medicine packaging machine 7. When packaging is performed by the manual powder medicine packaging means 4, the pharmacist (user) places the powder medicine in a weighing container (not shown) and weighs it with the medicine weighing device 6, then moves the weighing container with the weighed powder medicine placed therein to the powder medicine packaging machine 7 and loads the powder medicine into the powder medicine packaging machine 7. As a result, the loaded powder medicine is divided into single doses (packets) and packaged by the powder medicine packaging machine 7.

[0075] Automatic tablet packaging machine 5 has a plurality of tablet cassettes (not shown) in which tablets are individually stored. Multiple types of tablets are stored in one or more tablet cassettes, and the entire device stores multiple types of tablets. Therefore, automatic tablet packaging machine 5 can perform an automatic tablet packaging operation in which tablets are automatically dispensed from one or more tablet cassettes based on prescription data and packaged in medicine packets for each dose. The tablets stored in this tablet cassette include divided tablets, such as half tablets or quarter tablets, which are tablets with a portion missing from the tablet, and capsule tablets.

[0076] In addition, the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 is also capable of performing a manual tablet packaging operation in which one or more tablets are manually placed on a manual distribution unit (a tray-like part with a lattice-like partition wall) and packaged in a medicine bag for each dose.

[0077] This automatic tablet packaging machine 5 also has a control unit (tablet side control unit), and like the control units of the other dispensing equipment mentioned above, an arithmetic unit, memory unit, and communication unit are formed by a CPU, main memory device, auxiliary memory device, I / O port, etc.

[0078] Next, the operation of the dispensing support system 1 will be described.

[0079] After the examination, the doctor inputs information (data) about the prescription into the external PC 20 and performs a predetermined operation, and the electronic medical record program installed in the external PC 20 creates prescription data from the input information. The created prescription data is then sent from the external PC 20 to the upper control device 2.

[0080] Prescription data is data created based on information about the entered prescription, and includes information about the prescription content necessary for dispensing work and information for identifying and managing the prescription itself.

[0081] The information on prescription contents includes information about the patient, such as the patient's name, patient ID, age, sex, height, weight, and body surface area. It also includes information about the prescribed medication, such as the drug name, drug ID, YJ code, GS1 code, amount, usage, dosage, and period of use (start date, end date, and period of use). It also includes information about the medical facility (hospital or clinic), such as the name, location, department (medical department, etc.), and information identifying the building (ward name, etc.), as well as information about the medical professional in charge, such as the name of the doctor in charge and the name of the pharmacist in charge. In addition, information used to identify and manage prescriptions includes the prescription number, RP number (receipt number), and prescription issue date. In other words, the prescription data includes the necessary information from among these.

[0082] The information included in the prescription data may be information about the prescription directly input by the doctor, information acquired by the program, or information created by the program based on this information. For example, information about the patient's age may be created (calculated) from information indicating the patient's date of birth directly input and information indicating the current date acquired by the program, and added to the prescription data. Furthermore, the information included in the prescription data may be information that the program appropriately creates and adds without referring to the information input by the user, such as a management number (prescription number or RP number).

[0083] Next, after receiving the prescription data, the upper control device 2 executes a distribution operation to determine (select) the dispensing device to be used for dispensing each drug in the prescription. In this allocation operation, the dispensing device that will execute the drug dispensing process (dispensing process) is determined based on information on the drug type (drug type and dosage form) in the prescription data and information on the various dispensing devices (for example, the powdered medicine storage information and tablet storage information) that belong to the dispensing support system 1. Note that the drug dispensing process referred to here includes packaging, in which the drug is divided into individual doses and packaged.

[0084] Specifically, the sorting operation executes a prescription analysis operation that analyzes prescription data and identifies the dosage form of one or more prescribed drugs. That is, it determines whether one or more drugs in the same prescription are tablets, powders, or other types of drugs (e.g., liquids, etc.). Furthermore, if the prescription contains powders or tablets, the prescription analysis operation also executes a discrimination operation that determines the packaging form, such as whether multiple drugs are packaged in a single bag for each dosing period (single packets), and if so, which drugs are packaged. Then, the following processing is performed for each dosage form identified in the prescription analysis operation.

[0085] [If your prescription contains tablets] If the prescription contains one or more tablets, the target packaging process is assigned to the automatic tablet packaging machine 5. Then, a discrimination operation (hereinafter referred to as the tablet-side allocation operation) is performed to determine which of the above-mentioned operations of the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 (automatic tablet packaging operation, manual tablet packaging operation) will be used to perform the packaging process. In other words, the tablet-side allocation operation is an operation that determines whether to have the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 automatically perform the packaging process, or to perform the packaging process manually using the automatic tablet packaging machine 5. Specifically, based on the prescription data and the above-mentioned tablet storage information, it is determined whether one or more types of tablets to be packaged in one package according to the prescription can be packaged (divided) using the automatic tablet packaging operation. As a result, if the packaging process can be performed using the automatic tablet packaging operation, the automatic tablet packaging operation is performed. On the other hand, if the packaging process cannot be performed using the automatic tablet packaging operation, it is determined that the packaging process will be performed manually using the automatic tablet packaging machine 5.

[0086] The tablet sorting operation that is performed after the packaging process is assigned to the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 may be performed by the higher-level control device 2 or by the automatic tablet packaging machine 5. For example, when performed by the automatic tablet packaging machine 5, the tablet storage information may be stored in a memory unit of the automatic tablet packaging machine 5, and after the higher-level control device 2 assigns the packaging process to the automatic tablet packaging machine 5, the higher-level control device 2 may send prescription data to the automatic tablet packaging machine 5.

[0087] [If the prescribed medication is powder] 6, for each packaging unit (one or more types of powder medicine packed in one bag), it is determined whether the packaging process can be performed by the automatic packaging operation of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 (step S1). That is, based on the prescription data and the powder medicine storage information described above, it is determined whether all of the powder medicines to be packed in one packet in the prescription are stored in the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3.

[0088] If the result of this determination operation is that packaging is possible through the automatic packaging operation of the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 (Yes in step S1), the packaging process is assigned to the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 (step S2). In other words, it is determined that this packaging process will be performed using the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3. On the other hand, if packaging is not possible through the automatic packaging operation of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 (No in step S1), the target packaging process is assigned to the manual powder medicine packaging means 4 (step S3). That is, it is determined that this packaging process will be performed using the manual powder medicine packaging means 4. As described above, in this embodiment, packaging processes are assigned preferentially to the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 over the manual powder medicine packaging means 4.

[0089] Once the packaging process for each drug in the prescription has been assigned to each dispensing device through the above allocation operation, the dispensing support system 1 executes an instruction sheet output operation (first output operation) that outputs an instruction sheet 83 (see Figure 7) from the printing device 13 of the upper control device 2. In the dispensing support system 1 of this embodiment, the instruction label output operation is automatically executed immediately after the allocation operation is completed. Here, "immediately after" refers to a short period of time during which the instruction label output operation is executed substantially consecutively with the allocation operation, specifically, within 30 seconds. Therefore, the instruction label output operation corresponding to the allocation operation is executed before the packaging process assigned in the allocation operation is executed by the assigned dispensing device.

[0090] As shown in Fig. 7, the instruction sheet 83 has written at the top thereof information indicating whether the patient is a new patient (first visit or return visit), the name of the ward, information about the patient to whom the medication was prescribed, the date of administration, the name of the medical department, the name of the attending physician, the order date and time (date the prescription was issued), and the order No. (prescription number). Also written on the instruction sheet 83 is a code or cipher (specifically, a barcode) for reading the prescription contents with an information reading device (specifically, a barcode reader) of the dispensing equipment. The code written on the instruction sheet 83 is not limited to a one-dimensional code such as a barcode, and may be any code compatible with the information reading device of the dispensing equipment, such as a two-dimensional code.

[0091] Further, below the instruction sheet 83, information regarding the prescribed medication and information indicating the results of the allocation operation are written. That is, in the "Shape" section below the instruction sheet 83, a "star" mark indicates powdered medication, and a "circle" mark indicates tablets. And in the "Manual / Machine / Automatic" section, "Manual," "Machine," and "Automatic" indicate that the packaging process was assigned to the "Manual Powdered Medication Packaging Means 4," "Automatic Tablet Packaging Machine 5," and "Fully Automatic Powdered Medication Packaging Machine 3," respectively. In this way, information regarding the allocation operation may be displayed using one or a combination of letters, numbers, symbols, figures, pictures, or other symbols (hereinafter simply referred to as letters, etc.). That is, information regarding the allocation operation may be output in a manner that allows the user to confirm (visibly recognize) the content of the information.

[0092] In the example described in this prescription 83, four medications have been prescribed for one patient (test inpatient 1): "AAAAA drug," "BBBBB drug," "CCCCC drug," and "DDDDD drug." In the following explanation, these four medications will be simply referred to as "Drug A," "Drug B," "Drug C," and "Drug D." "Drug A" and "Drug B" are drugs that have been determined in the sorting operation to be packaged by the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3. In other words, both are powder medicines that have the same dosing period and are packaged in the same bag, and both have been determined to be stored in the container storage unit 31 of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3.

[0093] "Medicine C" is a medicine that has been determined to be packaged by the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 during the sorting operation. In other words, it is a tablet, and it has been determined that one type of tablet should be packaged in one bag, one dose at a time. Furthermore, "D medicine" is a medicine that has been determined to be packaged by the manual powder medicine packaging means 4 during the sorting operation. That is, it is a powder medicine, and one type of powder medicine is packaged in one bag for each dose, and it has been determined to be a powder medicine that is not stored in the container storage unit 31 of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3.

[0094] In other words, the instruction sheet 83 is a portable document that contains the information contained in a normal prescription, as well as information necessary for management and information showing the results of the allocation operation, printed in a manner that is visible to the user. Therefore, by checking this instruction sheet 83, the dispensing person (user) can determine which dispensing device to go to in order to carry out dispensing work efficiently. For example, in the above example, "Drug A," "Drug B," and "Drug C" are automatically packaged, so the dispensing person (user) first goes to the location where the manual powder medicine packaging means 4 (drug weighing device 6) is installed and performs the work of packaging "Drug D." After that, the dispensing person receives "Drug D" packaged by the powder medicine packaging machine 7, and then goes to the location where the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 is installed and the location where the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 is installed, and receives "Drug A," "Drug B," and "Drug C" at each location, and so on.

[0095] Furthermore, outputting not only the information indicating the results of the allocation operation but also the information written on the prescription and the information required for management in a manner that allows them to be confirmed at a glance, as in the instruction sheet 83 of this embodiment, has the advantage of making it less likely for human errors to occur when the dispensing staff performs the dispensing work. That is, since the dispensing staff can work while checking the contents of the prescription, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of errors resulting from insufficient confirmation of the contents of the prescription, such as receiving the wrong medicine from the automatic packaging machine.

[0096] The instruction sheet 83 of this embodiment outputs information necessary for the final inspection of the dispensing (inspection work). Specifically, among the above-mentioned information, this corresponds to the name of the attending physician, information about the patient (name, sex, age, etc.), and information about the drug (drug name, dosage form, usage, dosage, administration period, etc.). In other words, this information is necessary to determine whether there are any omissions or errors in the prescription information, whether the prescription contents are appropriate for the patient, etc.

[0097] After executing the allocation operation, the dispensing support system 1 also executes a dispensing information transmission operation to transmit information required for packaging processing to the dispensing devices assigned to package each drug in the prescription. For example, in the example described above, information for executing packaging processing to package "drug A" and "drug B" is sent to the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3, and information for executing packaging processing to package "drug C" is sent to the automatic tablet packaging machine 5. Furthermore, information for executing packaging processing to package "drug D" is sent to the medicine weighing device 6 and the powdered medicine packaging machine 7.

[0098] Furthermore, after executing the allocation operation, the dispensing support system 1 executes a medicine bag preparation operation in which one or more medicine bags are output from the medicine bag preparation device 14 of the upper control device 2. The medicine bags are used to contain the medicines to be provided to the patient.

[0099] 8, the output medicine bag 90 has an information printed section 91 and a two-dimensional code 92 on a part of the side. As with conventional medicine bags, the information printed section 91 is a section on which information about the patient who will receive the medicine and information about the medicine contained therein are printed. The two-dimensional code 92 is a code (sign or code) printed on the medicine bag 90, and is a code that includes information that identifies the prescription of the medicine contained therein. In this embodiment, the information that identifies the prescription of the medicine contained therein is the prescription number and the Rp number, but other information may be used as long as it is possible to identify the prescription.

[0100] The instruction output operation, dispensing information transmission operation, and medicine envelope preparation operation may be performed in any order, or may be performed in parallel. Note that the medicine envelope preparation operation does not need to be performed when a medicine envelope is not required for providing the medicine, such as when providing medicine to an inpatient.

[0101] After executing the dispensing information transmission operation, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 automatically sequentially executes the packaging processes assigned in the allocation operation, unless a reassignment operation, which will be described later, is executed or an unexpected malfunction occurs in the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3. Then, on the condition that the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 has completed the execution of the packaging process, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 executes a completion information transmission operation (which will be described in detail later).

[0102] After the dispensing information transmission operation is performed, the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 performs the packaging process using either the automatic tablet packaging operation or the manual tablet packaging operation described above. Then, on the condition that the packaging process is completed in the automatic tablet packaging machine 5, the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 performs a completion information transmission operation (described in detail later).

[0103] The manual powder medicine packaging means 4 receives the signal transmitted in the dispensing information transmission operation, and thereby becomes able to carry out the assigned packaging process. Specifically, before weighing begins in the drug weighing device 6, the dispensing staff specifies the powdered medicine to be packaged in the assigned packaging process and reads the barcode on the medicine bottle, etc. This confirms whether the powdered medicine to be weighed is the correct one prescribed. Then, when weighing is completed in the drug weighing device 6, the drug weighing device 6 associates information about the weighing result with information about the packaging process it has received and transmits this information to the powder packaging machine 7. This allows the dispensing staff, when attempting to put powdered medicine into the supply hopper 77 of the powder packaging machine 7, to determine whether the powdered medicine to be put in is the correct one weighed according to the prescription. That is, in the manual powder medicine packaging means 4, the medicine weighing device 6 and the powder medicine packaging machine 7 execute various operations based on the information transmitted in the dispensing information transmission operation. Then, in the manual powder medicine packaging means 4, the powder medicine packaging machine 7 executes a completion information transmission operation (described in detail later) on the condition that the powder medicine packaging process assigned to it has been completed.

[0104] Here, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 can perform a transfer operation by having the user perform a specified operation on the operation display unit 50 after receiving the information transmitted in the dispensing information transmission operation and before starting to execute the packaging process assigned in the allocation operation.

[0105] The transfer operation executed by the fully automatic powder medicine packing machine 3 is an operation to switch (change) the allocation destination of the packaging process determined in the allocation operation, and is an operation to switch the allocation destination of the packaging process allocated to the fully automatic powder medicine packing machine 3 to the manual powder medicine packing means 4. In other words, the fully automatic powder medicine packing machine 3 has a transfer function to transfer the packaging process allocated to it to another dispensing device.

[0106] Therefore, the allocation destination determined by the above-described allocation operation is a determination that may be switched in the future, and if there is no switching, the allocation destination determined by the allocation operation is a permanent determination. On the other hand, if there is switching, the allocation destination determined by the allocation operation is a temporary determination. For this reason, the instruction sheet output operation described above is an operation for printing (outputting) information that may be switched (changed) in the future.

[0107] When the transfer operation is executed, the target packaging process is deleted from the unprocessed packaging processes stored in the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3. Then, information required to execute the target packaging process is transmitted from the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 to the medicine weighing device 6 and the powder medicine packaging machine 7. That is, information containing the same content as the information transmitted in the dispensing information transmission operation is transmitted. At this time, information indicating that the allocation destination has been switched (that the transfer operation has been executed) may be added to this transmitted information.

[0108] As described above, a completion information transmission operation is executed when each dispensing device belonging to the dispensing support system 1 completes the packaging process assigned to that device. The completion information transmission operation is an operation for transmitting predetermined information including information indicating that the packaging process assigned in the allocation operation or transfer operation has been completed to the upper control device 2. For example, in the above example, information indicating that packaging of "Drug A" and "Drug B" is complete is transmitted from the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3. Similarly, information indicating that packaging of "Drug D" is complete and information indicating that packaging of "Drug C" is complete are transmitted to the upper control device 2 from each of the manual powder medicine packaging means 4 (powder medicine packaging machine 7) and the automatic tablet packaging machine 5.

[0109] Here, after executing the above-mentioned allocation operation, the upper control device 2 becomes in a state where it can execute an inspection screen output operation (second output operation). This inspection screen output operation is an operation in which an inspection screen 95 (see FIG. 9) is output to the display device 11 of the upper control device 2 by executing a predetermined operation on the upper control device 2. This inspection screen 95 is a screen used for the final inspection of the dispensing (final confirmation work performed by a pharmacist different from the dispenser who performed the preparation work), and displays information necessary for the final inspection.

[0110] 9, the inspection screen 95 displays in a table format all of the various information written on the instruction sheet 83, excluding the "manual / machine / self" item (information indicating the results of the allocation operation). In addition, the inspection screen 95 displays a transfer status confirmation area 96, a transfer history display area 97, and a dispensing status confirmation area 98.

[0111] The repackaging status confirmation area 96 is an area that displays information indicating whether a packaging process repackaging has been performed by any of the dispensing devices (in this embodiment, the repackaging operation of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3). If a repackaging has been performed, "Automatic dispensing change made" is displayed, as shown in FIG. 9. On the other hand, if a repackaging has not been performed, "Automatic dispensing change not made" is displayed.

[0112] Note that the configuration may be such that only one of "automated dispensing changed" and "automated dispensing not changed" is displayed. For example, if a transfer has been made, "automated dispensing changed" may be displayed, and if not, nothing may be displayed (no information regarding whether a transfer has been made is displayed). In other words, the transfer status confirmation area 96 may output text or the like so that the user can confirm whether a transfer has been made or not, at least in either case.

[0113] The transfer history display area 97 is an area corresponding to the "powdered medication device" item on the inspection screen 95 in Fig. 9. That is, when a transfer operation is performed, the transfer history (change record) and the dispensing device that ultimately performed the packaging process (actually performed the packaging process) are displayed, and when a transfer operation is not performed, the dispensing device allocated in the allocation operation (actually performed the packaging process) is displayed. When a transfer is made, specifically, information indicating (specifying) the allocated dispensing equipment before and after the switch (before and after the change) at each point in time is displayed in text or the like. In the inspection screen 95 of this embodiment, information related to the transfer history is displayed using letters and arrows. That is, "automatic" and "manual" indicate the "fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3" and the "manual powder medicine packaging means 4," respectively, and the direction of the arrow indicates which dispensing equipment is used before and after the switch. That is, the example shown in Figure 9 shows that after the packaging process for "drug A" and "drug B" was assigned to the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 in the allocation operation, the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 performed a transfer operation and the assignment destination was switched to the manual powder medicine packaging means 4. In addition, if the transfer operation has not been performed, the result of the allocation operation is displayed as is, indicating that there is no transfer history. In the example shown in Figure 9, the packaging process for "Drug D" was assigned to the manual powder medicine packaging means 4 in the allocation operation and was executed as is.

[0114] In this embodiment, when a transfer operation is performed in the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3, information indicating that the transfer operation has been performed (hereinafter also referred to as transfer execution information) is transmitted from the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 to the upper control device 2. The operation of displaying information in the transfer status confirmation area 96 and the transfer history display area 97 is performed based on this transfer execution information. That is, in this embodiment, the dispensing device that performs the transfer operation (fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3) is configured to transmit the transfer execution information to the upper control device 2 every time a transfer operation is performed.

[0115] The dispensing status confirmation area 98 is an area where information indicating whether or not all packaging processes (dispensing) of drugs in the same prescription have been completed is displayed in the form of text or the like. That is, the upper control device 2 performs a completion determination operation to determine whether or not all packaging processes (dispensing) of drugs in the same prescription have been completed, based on the signal transmitted by each dispensing device in its completion information transmission operation. Then, as a result of the completion determination operation, if all packaging processes have been completed, "dispensing completed" is displayed, and if not, "dispensing incomplete" is displayed. In addition, the display in the dispensing status confirmation area 98, similar to the display in the transfer status confirmation area 96 described above, may also output characters or the like so that the user can confirm information indicating whether the packaging process is complete or incomplete at least in one of the two states.

[0116] Then, when the dispensing status confirmation area 98 indicates that all packaging of drugs in the same prescription has been completed, a final inspection of the dispensing is performed using the inspection screen 95, and after the final inspection is completed, the drug is provided to the patient, thereby completing the dispensing process.

[0117] Incidentally, in the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3, when multiple packaging processes are assigned and execution of each packaging process has not yet started (unprocessed state), the user can perform a specified operation to make the specified unprocessed packaging process the next packaging process to be executed. Specifically, when the prescription standby screen 100 (see Figure 10) is displayed on the operation display unit 50 of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 and the area where the unprocessed list button 103 is displayed on the prescription standby screen 100 is pressed, the unprocessed list display screen 105 (see Figure 11) is displayed.

[0118] On the unprocessed list display screen 105, unprocessed packaging processes are displayed in a list display area 106. Specifically, patient names corresponding to each unprocessed packaging process are displayed in a list on the left side of the list display area 106. When an area displaying one patient name, which is one element of the list, is pressed, one unprocessed packaging process is selected, and a list of powder medicines to be packaged in the selected unprocessed packaging process is displayed on the right side of the list display area 106.

[0119] For example, in the example shown in Figure 11, three patient names are displayed as elements in the list on the left: two "Yuyama Taro" and one "Test Inpatient 1," and the three areas displaying each patient name can be pressed. In other words, two of the packaging processes for the powdered medication prescribed for "Yuyama Taro" are pending, and one of the packaging processes for the powdered medication prescribed for "Test Inpatient 1" is pending. Then, by pressing the area where "Test Inpatient 1" is displayed, one unprocessed packaging process is identified, and the "Drug A" and "Drug B" to be packaged in the identified unprocessed packaging process are listed on the right.

[0120] When an unprocessed packaging process is selected on the unprocessed list display screen 105, pressing the area where the prescription expansion button 107 is displayed causes a content confirmation screen 110 (see FIG. 12) to be displayed. The content confirmation screen 110 is a screen where the user (dispenser) makes a final confirmation before executing the packaging process, and is a screen where information indicating the content of the selected unprocessed packaging process is displayed. Pressing the area where the issue button 111 is displayed on this content confirmation screen 110 confirms that the selected unprocessed packaging process will be the next packaging process to be executed.

[0121] Furthermore, when the issue button 111 is pressed on the content confirmation screen 110, information indicating the next packaging process to be executed is displayed on the prescription standby screen 100, as shown in FIG.

[0122] In this embodiment, an information reading device (not shown) of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 is used to read the two-dimensional code 92 on the medicine bag 90, thereby automatically selecting the unprocessed packaging process without having to perform the operation of selecting the unprocessed packaging process described above.

[0123] That is, when the prescription standby screen 100 is displayed (as shown in FIG. 10), if the information reading device reads the two-dimensional code 92, the information (e.g., the control number) read from the two-dimensional code 92 is displayed in the code display area 104 (see FIG. 10). Then, the screen automatically shifts to a state in which the content confirmation screen 110 (see FIG. 12) is displayed. That is, the upper control device 2 automatically identifies an unprocessed packaging process to be performed for packaging the powdered medicine contained in the medicine bag 90, based on the information read from the two-dimensional code 92. Then, the identified packaging process is automatically selected as the next packaging process to be performed, and the content confirmation screen 110 is displayed. Then, as described above, by pressing the area where the issue button 111 is displayed while the content confirmation screen 110 is displayed, the selected unprocessed packaging process is confirmed as the next packaging process to be performed. Then, as shown in FIG. 13, information indicating the next packaging process to be performed is displayed on the prescription standby screen 100.

[0124] It should be noted that the content confirmation screen 110 does not necessarily have to be displayed after reading the two-dimensional code 92. In other words, the unprocessed packaging process identified by reading the two-dimensional code 92 may be automatically determined as the next packaging process to be executed. In this case, as in the above, with the prescription standby screen 100 displayed (as shown in FIG. 10), the information reading device of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 is used to read the two-dimensional code 92 on the medicine bag 90. This identifies an unprocessed packaging process to be carried out for packaging the powder medicine contained in the medicine bag 90, and the identified packaging process is automatically determined as the packaging process to be carried out next. Therefore, the prescription standby screen 100 automatically displays information indicating the packaging process to be carried out next in the code display area 104 (for example, a control number or other multi-digit number with a subnumber as needed).

[0125] The fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 of the above-described embodiment retrieves and moves a predetermined medicine container 30 from the container storage unit 31, and then weighs and dispenses the powder medicine from the moved medicine container 30. However, the automatic powder medicine packaging machine that can be employed in the dispensing support system of the present invention is not limited to this.

[0126] In an automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine, a medicine container for storing powder medicine inside (hereinafter also referred to as a powder medicine storage container) and a medicine container used to dispense powder medicine into a distribution tray (hereinafter also referred to as a temporary powder medicine storage container) may be different containers rather than the same container. In this case, the automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine may move the powder medicine storage container from a shelf unit (cassette shelf) that stores the powder medicine storage container to a weighing device (weighing unit), and cause the weighing device to discharge a predetermined amount based on prescription data from the powder medicine storage container into the temporary powder medicine storage container. Thereafter, the temporary powder medicine storage container may be moved from the weighing device and placed on a placement unit (vibration device) associated with the distribution tray (disk), and an operation may be performed in which all of the medicine (powder medicine) stored in the temporary powder medicine storage container is discharged into the distribution tray. In other words, instead of the above-described configuration in which the container mounting device 39 has the vibration means 56 and the weight measuring means, a vibration device and a weighing device may be provided separately. In this case, the operation of discharging (removing) the powdered medicine from the medicine container while weighing it and the operation of discharging the powdered medicine from the medicine container to the distribution tray do not have to be performed simultaneously, and may be performed separately in different locations. In other words, the configuration may be such that the powdered medicine is directly poured from the storage medicine container into the distribution tray, or the powdered medicine discharged from the storage medicine container may be temporarily stored in another container, and then the powdered medicine from the other container may be poured into the distribution tray.

[0127] Alternatively, the automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine may be configured to discharge powder medicine from a powder medicine storage container while the powder medicine storage container is held in the container storage unit. In this case, the container storage unit (cassette shelf) may have multiple levels (e.g., three levels), and a space may be formed below each level. At this time, medicine containers are arranged in a ring shape on the small shelves that make up each level, and a weighing device (electronic balance) is placed in the space below each level (each small shelf section). The space below each level is large enough to accommodate other dispensing containers (hereinafter also referred to as temporary powder medicine storage containers) with the weighing device in place. Then, a robot moves the temporary powder medicine storage container below one small shelf section and places it on the weighing device. Meanwhile, the first small shelf section is rotated around its vertical axis, and a specific medicine container is moved above the weighing device. The powder medicine is then weighed and discharged from the specific medicine container, and a specific amount of powder medicine based on prescription data is discharged into the temporary powder medicine storage container transported above the weighing device. The temporary powdered medicine storage container is then moved by a robot and placed on a placement section (vibration device) associated with the distribution tray (disk), and all of the medicine (powdered medicine) contained in the temporary powdered medicine storage container is discharged onto the distribution tray. In other words, it is not necessary to separate the powder medicine storage container from the container storage unit and discharge the powder medicine at a location distant from the container storage unit. A powder medicine discharging mechanism may be provided in the container storage unit or the powder medicine storage container itself, and the powder medicine may be discharged into a dispensing container near the powder medicine storage container, and then the powder medicine may be poured from the dispensing container into the distribution tray.

[0128] In the above embodiment, an example was described in which prescription data was created by the external PC 20 and the created prescription data was sent to the upper control device 2, but information regarding the prescription entered by the external PC 20 may be sent to the upper control device 2, and the prescription data may be created by the upper control device 2.

[0129] In the above embodiment, the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 is configured to automatically and sequentially execute the packaging processes assigned in the sorting operation, but the present invention is not limited to this. The fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 may not automatically perform the packaging process assigned in the sorting operation, but may perform the packaging process by performing a predetermined operation (a series of operations to be performed in order from the state where the above-mentioned prescription standby screen 100 is displayed). In other words, the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 may be configured not to start the packaging process unless the dispensing person goes to the location where the fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3 is installed and performs a predetermined operation after the sorting operation is performed.

[0130] In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the dispensing support system 1 includes one fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3, one manual powdered medicine packaging means 4, and one automatic tablet packaging machine 5, but the present invention is not limited to this. A plurality of these may be provided. Therefore, the above-mentioned transfer operation may be an operation in which a pharmacist performs a predetermined operation on the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 to select one of multiple manual powder medicine packaging means 4 as the transfer destination, and then switches the destination to the selected manual powder medicine packaging means 4.

[0131] Furthermore, in a system having a plurality of fully automatic powder medicine packaging machines 3, the plurality of fully automatic powder medicine packaging machines 3 may store the same powder medicine therein, or at least two fully automatic powder medicine packaging machines 3 may store different powder medicine therein. Here, "different powder medicines stored therein" includes a configuration in which the powder medicines stored in one of the two fully automatic powder medicine packaging machines 3 are all different from the powder medicines stored in the other, as well as a configuration in which only some of the powder medicines stored in one are the same as those stored in the other. Similarly, when a plurality of automatic tablet packaging machines 5 are provided, the tablets stored inside the plurality of automatic tablet packaging machines 5 may be the same or different.

[0132] In the allocation operation, one capable of packaging the drugs to be allocated is selected as the allocation destination from among multiple fully automatic powder drug packaging machines 3 or multiple automatic tablet packaging machines 5. If multiple fully automatic powder drug packaging machines 3 or multiple automatic tablet packaging machines 5 are capable of packaging the drugs, the allocation destination may be determined based on the amount of drugs stored or the number of unpackaged drugs. In other words, the one with the fewest unpackaged drugs or the one with the largest amount of drugs stored to be packaged in packaging may be selected as the allocation destination. For example, suppose that both the first fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 and the second fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 are capable of packaging, and when the allocation operation is performed, the first fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 has a larger number of unprocessed packaging processes than the second fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3. In this case, the second fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 is assigned. Furthermore, when packaging multiple powdered medicines using the packaging process, the above-mentioned "the one with the larger storage volume of medicine" may mean that the total storage volume of the multiple powdered medicines to be packaged is larger, or may mean that the storage volume of one or more powdered medicines selected from the multiple powdered medicines to be packaged is larger.

[0133] Furthermore, in a configuration including multiple units of at least one of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3, manual powder medicine packaging means 4, and automatic tablet packaging machine 5, the instruction output operation may output identification information that uniquely identifies one dispensing machine from multiple dispensing machines including dispensing machines of the same type. To explain this by way of example, suppose the system includes two fully automatic powder medicine packaging machines 3, each designated as Machine No. 1 and Machine No. 2. In this case, in the example above, "Automatic" was output when packaging processing was assigned to the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3, but instead, "Automatic 1" or "Automatic 2" may be output. Similarly, in the inspection screen output operation, identification information (information that individually identifies each dispensing device) that uniquely identifies the dispensing device to which the packaging process was assigned and the dispensing device that actually performed the packaging process may be output.

[0134] In the above-described instruction sheet output operation, an example has been shown in which various information is printed on paper media by the printing device 13 of the upper control device 2 and output, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the instruction sheet 83 may be output from a printing device of another device belonging to the dispensing support system 1 (for example, the printing device 62 of the drug weighing device 6), or may be output from a printing device such as a printer outside the system. Furthermore, the operation is not limited to outputting on paper media, and for example, the instruction sheet 83 may be displayed in a visible state on an external mobile terminal (for example, a mobile phone or a tablet PC). Furthermore, the same information as that printed on the instruction sheet 83 may be output on a display device of another device belonging to the dispensing support system 1, but from the viewpoint of improving the efficiency of dispensing work, it is desirable to output the instruction sheet 83 in a portable state.

[0135] Similarly, the inspection screen output operation is not limited to an operation of outputting in a visible state on the display device 11 of the higher-level control device 2, but may be output (printed) on an output medium such as a paper medium discharged from a device belonging to the dispensing support system 1 or a printing device outside the system. Also, it may be output on a display device of a device belonging to the dispensing support system 1 or a device outside the system (including a mobile terminal).

[0136] In the above embodiment, an example was shown in which a two-dimensional code 92 was printed on the medicine bag 90, but the code printed on the medicine bag 90 may be a one-dimensional code such as a barcode. Any code may be used as long as the information can be obtained by reading it with the information reading device of the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing and packaging machine 3. Furthermore, the two-dimensional code 92 may be printed directly on the medicine bag, or may be output to a label or the like that is created separately from the medicine bag. That is, instead of the medicine bag creation operation described above, the medicine bag and a label or the like with the code attached may be output separately, and the medicine bag may be created by attaching the label or the like to the medicine bag.

[0137] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the allocation operation is performed by the host controller 2, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the allocation operation may be performed by another dispensing device belonging to the system, such as the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing machine 3. For example, prescription information may be transmitted from the external PC 20 to the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing machine 3, and the fully automatic powder medicine dispensing machine 3 may create prescription data, perform the allocation operation, and perform the dispensing information transmission operation. In other words, a dispensing support system may be envisioned in which the operations performed by the above-described host controller 2 are performed by dispensing devices belonging to the system, without providing the host controller 2.

[0138] Next, a dispensing support system 301, which is different from the dispensing support system 1 of the above embodiment, will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 14. Note that, for the parts that are the same as those described in the dispensing support system 1, duplicated detailed descriptions will be omitted.

[0139] In addition to the devices of dispensing support system 1 described above, dispensing support system 301 of this embodiment further includes a plurality of dispensing devices (drug dispensing means) consisting of an automatic PTP drug procurement device 310 (first drug dispensing means), a manual PTP drug procurement means 311 (second drug dispensing means), an automatic liquid medication dispensing machine 312, and a manual liquid medication dispensing means 313. These dispensing devices are also connected to host control device 2 in a state capable of sending and receiving data, similar to the other dispensing devices (fully automatic powdered medicine packaging machine 3, manual powdered medicine packaging means 4, automatic tablet packaging machine 5) described above that belong to the system.

[0140] The PTP medicine automatic procurement device 310 is a device that automatically executes a dispensing process (procedure process) of PTP-packaged tablets (hereinafter also referred to as PTP medicines) based on prescription data. That is, this PTP medicine automatic procurement device 310 has a plurality of PTP medicine cassettes (not shown), and a plurality of types of PTP medicines are stored in one or more tablet cassettes, each for each type. Then, based on prescription data, it is possible to extract the required amount of specified PTP medicines from one or more PTP medicine cassettes, and place the extracted PTP medicines on a removal tray (not shown) and dispense them (automatic PTP medicine procurement operation). In addition, this PTP medicine automatic procurement device 310 is equipped with a display device and an input device, which are formed integrally or separately.

[0141] The manual PTP drug procuring means 311 is specifically a picking assistance device that is used when a pharmacist picks drugs from a medicine shelf and manually dispenses (procures) them, reads information about the drugs from codes (barcodes, etc.) attached to the medicine shelf, etc., and collates the read information with the prescribed drug.

[0142] Automatic liquid medication dispenser 312 is a device that automatically dispenses liquid medication based on prescription data. That is, automatic liquid medication dispensing machine 312 has multiple liquid medication original bottles (supply containers, not shown) and multiple prescription bottles (providing containers, not shown) inside. Multiple types of liquid medications are stored in one or multiple liquid medication original bottles. Additionally, multiple types of prescription bottles of different sizes are stored inside the machine in an empty state. Automatic liquid medication dispensing machine 312 is capable of performing the operations of extracting a predetermined amount of liquid medication from a predetermined liquid medication source bottle, pouring the liquid medication into a prescription bottle, and dispensing the prescription bottle containing the liquid medication (automatic liquid medication dispensing operation) based on the prescription data. Note that in this automatic liquid medication dispensing operation, a prescription bottle to be used is selected based on the amount to be extracted, and the extracted liquid medication is poured into the selected empty prescription bottle.

[0143] Manual liquid medication dispensing means 313 is a device used mainly for measuring liquid medication, and includes a main body device, information reading means for medication verification, and a printing device (details not shown). The main device has a liquid level meter section (not shown), which is composed of at least one of a liquid level measuring device that can measure the liquid level using ultrasonic waves with a measuring container such as a graduated cylinder, and an electronic balance. The information reading means is specifically a barcode reader, and the printing device is specifically a printer.

[0144] Like the dispensing equipment described above, these automatic PTP drug procurement device 310, manual PTP drug procurement means 311, automatic liquid medication dispensing machine 312, and manual liquid medication dispensing means 313 have an arithmetic unit, a memory unit, and a communication unit formed by a CPU, a main memory device, an auxiliary memory device, an I / O port, etc.

[0145] In the dispensing support system 1 of the above-described embodiment, when the prescription contains tablets that can be packaged by the automatic tablet packaging machine 5 or when the prescription contains powdered medicine, a distribution operation is performed in which the packaging process (drug dispensing process) is assigned to one of the dispensing machines in the system. In contrast to this, in the allocation operation performed by the dispensing support system 301 of this embodiment, in addition to this, when a prescription contains PTP drugs and liquid medications, the dispensing processes for these drugs are allocated to dispensing devices within the system.

[0146] [If the prescribed medication is a PTP drug] If the prescription contains one or more types of PTP drugs, it is determined whether the number is compatible with the PTP drug automatic procurement device 310 (for example, four or less types). If the number of types is a manageable number and all of the drugs are PTP drugs that can be dispensed (collected) by the PTP drug automatic procurement device 310, the dispensing process is assigned to the PTP drug automatic procurement device 310. Conversely, if one or more drugs cannot be dispensed by the PTP drug automatic procurement device 310, the dispensing process is assigned to the manual PTP drug procurement means 311. Furthermore, if the number of types is greater than the number that can be handled, a determination is made for each of the drugs that is less than the number that can be handled, as to whether or not they can be dispensed by the PTP drug automatic procuring device 310. Then, as described above, if the drugs can be dispensed by the PTP drug automatic procuring device 310, the dispensing process in question is assigned to the PTP drug automatic procuring device 310, and if they cannot be dispensed, the dispensing process is assigned to the manual PTP drug procuring means 311.

[0147] [If the prescribed medication is a liquid] Furthermore, if the prescription contains a liquid medication, it is determined whether or not the liquid medication can be dispensed by automatic liquid medication dispenser 312, and if so, the target dispensing process is assigned to automatic liquid medication dispenser 312. Conversely, if the dispensing process cannot be executed by automatic liquid medication dispenser 312, the target dispensing process is assigned to manual liquid medication dispensing means 313.

[0148] Then, after the allocation operation is performed, the dispensing information transmission operation is performed to transmit information necessary for the dispensing process to the dispensing device assigned to the dispensing process, as described above. In addition, the instruction sheet output operation and the medicine bag preparation operation are also performed as appropriate.

[0149] In other words, in the dispensing support system 1 of the above-described embodiment, when a powdered medicine is included in a prescription, the dispensing process (packaging process) is assigned to either the manual medicine dispensing means (manual powder medicine packaging means 4) or the automatic medicine dispensing means (fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3, which is the automatic powder medicine packaging means). In addition, in this dispensing support system 301, when a PTP medicine or liquid medicine is included in a prescription, the dispensing process (procurement process, dispensing process) is assigned to either the manual medicine dispensing means or the automatic medicine dispensing means. In this case, naturally, the manual medicine dispensing means is the manual PTP medicine procurement means 311 and the manual liquid medicine dispensing means 313, and the automatic medicine dispensing means is the automatic PTP medicine procurement device 310 and the automatic liquid medicine dispenser 312. An automatic drug dispensing means is a device (dispensing equipment and drug dispensing means) that automatically performs a series of operations, using drugs (powders, tablets, PTP drugs, liquid drugs, etc.) stored inside, weighing or counting the drugs to be dispensed, and discharging a predetermined amount or number of drugs in a form to be provided to the patient (contained in a medicine packet or container, or in a blister pack). In contrast, a manual drug dispensing means is one or more dispensing devices (drug dispensing means) used by a pharmacist to manually remove a container containing the drug from a medicine shelf, etc., to weigh (count) the drug, and to provide the drug to a patient manually or using a device (packaging device).

[0150] Similarly, when the prescription contains PTP medications or liquid medications, the automatic dispensing means is given priority for dispensing processing.

[0151] In addition, the PTP drug automatic procurement device 310 can perform a transfer operation by having the user perform a specified operation after receiving the information transmitted in the dispensing information transmission operation and before starting to execute the packaging process assigned in the allocation operation. The transfer operation performed by the PTP automatic medicine procuring device 310 is an operation of switching the allocation destination of the dispensing process assigned to itself to the manual PTP medicine procuring means 311, similar to the transfer operation of the fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine 3 described above.

[0152] Furthermore, in the above-described dispensing support system 301, automatic liquid medication dispensing machine 312 may be capable of performing a transfer operation. That is, automatic liquid medication dispensing machine 312 may be capable of switching the allocation destination of the dispensing process assigned to it to manual liquid medication dispensing means 313. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, an automatic tablet packaging machine 5 capable of performing both automatic tablet packaging and manual tablet packaging operations is used. However, instead of this, two dispensing devices may be used, each consisting of an automatic tablet packaging device capable of automatic tablet packaging operations and a manual tablet packaging means capable of manual tablet packaging operations. The automatic tablet packaging device may also be capable of switching the allocation destination of its assigned packaging process to the manual tablet packaging means.

[0153] In view of the above, an invention related to the present invention is a dispensing support system having a plurality of drug dispensing means capable of dispensing processes that dispense, prepare, or dispense drugs based on prescription data, the plurality of drug dispensing means including a first drug dispensing means and a second drug dispensing means that are capable of dispensing drugs of the same dosage form, and when a drug that can be dispensed by the first drug dispensing means and the second drug dispensing means is prescribed, the dispensing process is executed by one of the first drug dispensing means and the second drug dispensing means, and an allocation operation is executed to assign the dispensing process to one of the drug dispensing means, and before the dispensing process assigned by one of the allocation operations is executed, a first output operation is executed to output information showing the result of one of the allocation operations in a state that can be confirmed by the user. In the above-mentioned related invention, it is preferable that at least one of the multiple drug dispensing means has a transfer function that transfers the dispensing process assigned to itself to another drug dispensing means after the allocation operation is executed, and the allocation operation is an operation that permanently or temporarily determines the drug dispensing means that will execute the dispensing process, and the determination of the allocation operation is switched when the dispensing process is transferred. Furthermore, a preferred aspect of the related invention described above is one in which a second output operation is executed after the first output operation, and it is even more preferable that the second output operation is an operation that outputs information identifying the drug dispensing means that actually performed the dispensing operation in a manner that is visible to the user, on the condition that the dispensing process assigned to one of the drug dispensing means in the allocation operation has been executed by one of the drug dispensing means and that execution has been completed. In a further preferred aspect described above, it is more preferable that, in the second output operation, information relating to a transfer history is output when the dispensing process is transferred after the allocation operation. In a further preferred aspect of the above, it is more preferable that the first output operation and the second output operation output information related to the allocation of the dispensing process together with information necessary for inspecting the prescribed medication.

[0154] Incidentally, when providing medication to an inpatient, the patient may be transferred (change wards) between the time when a doctor issues a prescription for the inpatient and the time when the medication dispensed at a dispensing office (pharmacy department, etc.) in the hospital is delivered to the inpatient ward. That is, the doctor may input information (data) about the prescription into the external PC 20 (electronic medical record terminal), the electronic medical record program may create prescription data from the input information, and the patient may be transferred after the prescription data has been registered.

[0155] In such a case, when dispensing is completed by the dispensing support system 1 and the dispensed medicine is to be delivered to the hospitalized patient, even if the medicine is delivered to the ward where the patient was hospitalized when the prescription data was created, there may be a situation where the patient for whom the medicine was prescribed is not present in that ward. When this situation occurs, a nurse or other person working in the ward must search for the patient, which is time-consuming.

[0156] As a device for solving such problems, there is a ward information management system 401 that can be used in conjunction with the above-mentioned dispensing support system 1, as shown in FIG. The ward information management system 401 will be described in detail below, but duplicate detailed descriptions of the same parts as above will be omitted.

[0157] As shown in FIG. 15, a ward information management system 401 of this embodiment includes a ward information management device 402 (ward information management means) and a plurality of list display devices 408 (list display terminals).

[0158] In this embodiment, a personal computer is used as the ward information management device 402. That is, the ward information management device 402 has a main unit equipped with a calculation unit, a memory unit (storage means), and a communication unit, and a display unit and an input unit attached to the main unit, similar to the above-mentioned upper control device 2. The communication unit of the ward information management device 402 enables transmission and reception of data (signals) between the external PC 20, the list display device 408, external devices (not shown), etc., via an in-house communication network (LAN) etc.

[0159] The list display device 408 is a device that can display a ward information confirmation screen 409 (see Figure 16, details will be described later) and allows the user to input specified information (details will be described later) while the ward information confirmation screen 409 is displayed. A desktop computer (personal computer) or a mobile terminal (tablet PC, smartphone, notebook PC, etc.) can be used as the list display device 408. In this embodiment, the list display device 408 is a portable terminal (mobile terminal), and a tablet PC is used.

[0160] In other words, the list display device 408 also has an arithmetic unit, a memory unit (storage means), and a communication unit, and the communication unit enables data (signals) to be sent and received between the ward information management device 402 and the device via an in-house communication network (LAN) or the like. The list display device 408 also includes an operation display unit (not shown). The operation display unit is a touch panel that is formed by superimposing (integrating) a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display on a contact-type input device such as a touch sensor. In other words, the list display device 408 also includes a display device that displays various information and an input device that accepts user operations.

[0161] The storage units of the ward information management device 402 and the list display device 408 store programs and various data for executing various operations described below. In other words, the ward information management device 402 and the list display device 408 operate in accordance with the programs stored in the storage units, thereby executing various operations (various processes) of the ward information management system 401. Furthermore, a patient database is stored as such data in the storage unit of the ward information management device 402.

[0162] The patient database stores information that identifies the ward in which each patient is admitted. That is, information that identifies the patient (patient ID, patient name, etc.) and information that identifies the ward in which the patient is admitted (hereinafter also referred to as the admission ward, etc.) (ward name, etc.) are stored in association with each other. Specifically, the information specifying the ward where the patient will be admitted (patient's admission ward) may include information specifying the current admission ward as well as information specifying the past admission ward (for example, the admission ward at a specific point in the past, such as when the prescription was issued). It may also include information specifying the ward where the patient will be admitted in the future (a ward where the patient will be admitted after a certain point in the past or the present, which is used as the reference point).

[0163] Next, the operation executed by the ward information management system 401 will be described. Similarly to the above, when the doctor inputs information (data) about the prescription into the external PC 20 and executes a predetermined operation, prescription data is created. Then, the prescription data is transmitted to the ward information management device 402. That is, information about the contents of the prescription and information for identifying and managing the prescription itself (prescription number, etc.) are transmitted to the ward information management device 402. If the patient for whom the prescription has been issued is hospitalized or is scheduled to be hospitalized, the transmitted prescription data includes information specifying the ward in which the patient is hospitalized or is scheduled to be hospitalized at the time of creating the prescription data.

[0164] On the other hand, each time a patient is transferred to another ward, this fact is input via an external device, etc. Information indicating the content input from the external device, etc. is then sent to the ward information management device 402, which updates the patient database. In other words, the ward to which the patient has been transferred is stored as the ward in which the patient is currently hospitalized.

[0165] Furthermore, the ward information management device 402 executes an associating operation to associate the received prescription data with the information stored in the patient database based on the data. This association operation is performed on the condition that the ward information management device 402 receives prescription data. That is, in this operation, the patient to whom the prescription was issued is identified based on the prescription data, and information about the hospital ward of the patient to whom the prescription was issued is acquired by referring to the patient database based on the information identifying this patient. Then, the prescription data is associated with the information about the hospital ward (the information about the prescription content, the information for identifying and managing the prescription itself (prescription number), and the information about the hospital ward are linked).

[0166] Then, by performing a predetermined operation on the list display device 408, a ward information display operation is executed to display a ward information confirmation screen 409, as shown in Fig. 16. Specifically, when the ward information display operation is executed, the information associated by the above-mentioned association operation is transmitted from the ward information management device 402 to the list display device 408. Then, the display of the ward information confirmation screen 409 is executed.

[0167] The ward information confirmation screen 409 has a search condition input area 420 and a list display area 421, and is a screen that displays a table created based on the information associated by the above-mentioned association operation. Specifically, the display targets are narrowed down based on the information entered in the search condition input area 420, and a table including information identifying the patient and information identifying the ward in which the patient is admitted is displayed in the list display area 421 for patients who meet the conditions. For example, in the example of Fig. 16, the display targets patients who have been prescribed a drug with a dosing date of October 7, 2019. Then, for each patient to be displayed, a table is displayed that includes information identifying the patient (information identified in the patient ID display section 421f and patient name display section 421g) and information identifying the hospital ward in which the patient is currently hospitalized (information identified in the current ward display section 421k).

[0168] Specifically, the search condition input area 420 has a date input area 420a, a prescription category selection area 420b, an order number input area 420c, a patient ID input area 420d, a prescription category input area 420e, and a prescription ward input area 420f. Each of these areas belonging to the search condition input area 420 is a section for specifying the conditions for narrowing down the results. If no conditions are specified in all of the multiple areas belonging to the search condition input area 420, no narrowing down is performed. Furthermore, if conditions are specified in multiple areas, the results that satisfy all of the multiple conditions specified in the multiple areas will be displayed.

[0169] In the date input field 420a, it is possible to select either "dispensing date" or "administration date" and input the start and end dates of the period. In other words, the narrowing down condition is that the "dispensing date" or "administration date" of the prescribed medication falls within a specified period, and it is possible to specify as the display target patients who have been prescribed medication whose dispensing date falls within the specified period (within the input period) or whose administration date falls within the specified period. Note that by inputting the same date for the start and end dates of the period, the specified period can be set as the specified date.

[0170] In the prescription category selection area 420b, at least one of "regular" and "non-regular" can be selected (at least one can be checked). In other words, if only "regular" is checked, the condition for narrowing down the search is that the prescription category of the issued prescription is "regular", and patients who meet the condition will be displayed. Similarly, if only "non-regular" is checked, the condition for narrowing down the search is that the prescription category of the issued prescription is not "regular", and patients whose prescription category is not "regular" will be displayed. If both boxes are checked, the display will include both patients whose prescriptions are classified as "regular" and those whose prescriptions are classified as "non-regular" (no filtering will actually be performed based on the input in the prescription classification selection area 420b).

[0171] The order number input area 420c allows an order number to be input, and can display the patient for whom the order number of the issued prescription is entered. The patient ID input area 420d allows a patient ID to be input, and the patient whose patient ID is input can be displayed. The prescription category input area 420e allows the prescription category to be input, and the patients for whom the prescription category of the issued prescription is entered can be displayed. The prescription ward input area 420f allows the prescription ward to be input, and the patient who was admitted to the ward at the time of issuance of the prescription as entered can be displayed.

[0172] The list display area 421 has an order number display section 421a, a prescription number display section 421b, a prescription category display section 421c, a processing category display section 421d, a medication date display section 421e, a patient ID display section 421f, and a patient name display section 421g. It also has a medical department display section 421h, a doctor name display section 421i, a prescription ward display section 421j, a current ward display section 421k, and a transfer ward display section 421l.

[0173] The order number display section 421a, prescription number display section 421b, prescription classification display section 421c, and processing classification display section 421d are sections that respectively display the "order number," "prescription number," "prescription classification," "processing classification," etc. of the prescription issued to the target patient.

[0174] The medication date display section 421e is a section that displays information indicating the medication date of the medication prescribed to the target patient. If "dispensing date" is selected in the date input area 420a, a dispensing date display section (not shown) may be displayed instead of the medication date display section 421e. The dispensing date display section is a section that displays information indicating the dispensing date of the medication prescribed to the target patient.

[0175] The patient ID display section 421f and patient name display section 421g are sections that display the "patient ID" and "patient name" of the target patient. The medical department display section 421h and the doctor name display section 421i are sections that respectively display the medical department to which the doctor who issued the prescription to the patient belongs and the doctor's name.

[0176] The prescription ward display section 421j is a section that displays information indicating the ward in which the target patient is hospitalized or is scheduled to be hospitalized at the time of issuing the prescription (when creating the prescription data). The current ward display section 421k is a section that displays information indicating the ward in which the target patient is currently hospitalized or the ward in which the target patient is currently scheduled to be hospitalized. In addition, in the prescription ward display section 421j and the current ward display section 421k, if there is no target ward, information specifying the hospitalization ward is not displayed.

[0177] For example, in the example in Figure 16, it can be seen that a patient with the name "Patient 01" was hospitalized in "South Ward 3" when the prescription was issued, but was later transferred and is currently hospitalized in "East Ward 3." Also, it can be seen that a patient with the name "Patient 02" was hospitalized in "North Ward 1" when the prescription was issued, was not transferred thereafter, and is still currently hospitalized in "North Ward 1." Also, it can be seen that a patient with the name "Patient 05" was scheduled to be hospitalized in "North Ward 2" when the prescription was issued, but was not subsequently hospitalized. From the above, by checking the prescription ward display section 421j and the current ward display section 421k, it is possible to confirm whether the patient has been transferred to another ward and which ward the patient is currently hospitalized in. It is also possible to confirm whether a patient who was scheduled to be hospitalized in the past has actually been hospitalized.

[0178] The transport ward display section 421l is a section that displays information specifying the ward to which the medicine dispensed by the dispensing support system 1 was transported. For example, in the example of Fig. 16, it can be seen that the medicine prescribed for the patient whose patient name is "Patient 01" was transported to "East 3 Ward." That is, when a drug dispensed by the dispensing support system 1 is transported to a ward, that fact is input via an external device, etc. Then, information indicating the content input from the external device, etc. is transmitted to the ward information management device 402, which then updates the patient database. That is, in the patient database of this embodiment, information identifying the ward to which the drug was actually delivered is stored in association with information identifying the patient.

[0179] As described above, before transporting the medicine dispensed by the dispensing support system 1 to a ward, the transporter can check the ward information confirmation screen 409 to know the ward to which the patient will be transferred and transport the medicine to the ward where the patient is. Also, when a nurse or the like working in an inpatient ward receives the medicine delivered from the pharmacy, the nurse can easily know the ward to which the patient will be transferred by checking the ward information confirmation screen 409.

[0180] The above-described ward information management system 401 may be integrated with the dispensing support system 1. That is, the dispensing support system 1 described above may be configured to include a plurality of list display devices 408, and the upper control device 2 may store the same information as the ward information management device 402 and execute the same operations. That is, the dispensing support system 1 may store a patient database and execute an operation to update the patient database, an association operation, and an operation to display ward information.

[0181] Furthermore, the ward information management device 402 and the list display device 408 do not need to be provided separately, and a configuration may be adopted in which the ward information display operation is executed by executing a predetermined operation on the ward information management device 402. That is, the ward information confirmation screen 409 may be displayed on the display device of the ward information management device 402. Therefore, in the case where the ward information management system 401 and the dispensing support system 1 are integrated, the ward information confirmation screen 409 may be displayed on the display device 11 of the upper control device 2 in the same way. [Explanation of symbols]

[0182] 1; dispensing support system, 3; fully automatic powder medicine packaging machine (powder medicine packaging means, automatic powder medicine packaging machine), 4; manual powder medicine packaging means (powder medicine packaging means), 6; medicine weighing device (powder medicine weighing device), 7; powder medicine packaging machine, 30; medicine container, 31; container storage unit, 38; distribution tray, 45; medicine packaging device (powder medicine packaging device), 50; operation display unit (display device), 92; two-dimensional code (identification display)

Claims

[Claim 1] a powder medicine packaging means capable of packaging powder medicine in individual doses based on prescription data and discharging the same; The powder medicine packaging means comprises an automatic powder medicine packaging machine and a manual powder medicine packaging means composed of a separate medicine weighing device and powder medicine packaging machine, When a powdered medicine is prescribed, the packaging process is performed by one of the automatic powdered medicine packaging machine and the manual powdered medicine packaging means, By executing the allocation operation, the packaging process is assigned to either the automatic powder medicine packaging machine or the manual powder medicine packaging means, and before the packaging process assigned in the allocation operation is executed, a first output operation is executed to output information showing the result of the allocation operation in a state that can be confirmed by a user, the first output operation is an operation of outputting information indicating an allocation destination by the allocation operation, The result of the sorting operation can be changed before the packing process is executed, In the first output operation, an instruction sheet is output.

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