Sub-packaging bags

Abstract

This makes it easier to visually confirm that the individual medication packets are correctly placed in the medication calendar. [Solution] On the surface of the single-dose package 1 containing the drug 7, the dosage information 2, enclosed in a rectangular frame, is printed, showing the dosage (timing of administration), date, and day of the week for taking the contained drug. Additionally, a dosage tag 6A is printed, clearly indicating one of the dosages, "after breakfast," "after lunch," "after dinner," or "before bedtime," using a graphic illustration. Each of the multiple dosage tags is printed on the upper edge of the rectangular frame of the dosage timing information 2, at a position determined by the timing of administration, and at a different position for each timing.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a sub-packaging bag.

Background Art

[0002] When there are many types of drugs to be taken and many times of taking them, it tends to be difficult to correctly take the drugs. As a medication support tool for such patients (drug users) (typically the elderly), an "medicine calendar" is widely used. The "medicine calendar" is a storage item that enables the prescribed drugs to be taken in the correct amount at the correct time. It has pockets partitioned by date, day of the week, and time, and a single-packaged sub-pack in which the drugs for one dose are packaged in a sub-packaging bag is set in the pocket. By using a medicine calendar with a single-packaged sub-pack set, it is possible to eliminate confusion for each dose, such as the type of drug to be taken and the timing of taking it, and it becomes easier to correctly take the drugs.

[0003] In a pharmacy, a single-packaged sub-pack may be set in a medicine calendar, and the medicine calendar with the single-packaged sub-pack set may be provided to a patient. In this case, generally, whether the single-packaged sub-pack is correctly set in the medicine calendar is audited visually by a pharmacist or staff, but the burden of the auditing work for the pharmacist or staff is large.

[0004] Patent Document 1 discloses a medicine bag printed with different illustrations for each taking timing.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

[0006] Printing illustrations that show when to take medication makes it easier to understand the timing of administration than using text alone. However, when a medication calendar is used, it generally contains multiple individually packaged doses, so simply printing illustrations that show when to take medication does not necessarily make it easy to see whether the correct individual doses are set in the medication calendar. [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0007] The purpose of this invention is to make it easier to visually confirm whether the individual medication packets (individually packaged packets containing medication) are correctly set in the medication calendar. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The sachet bag according to this invention contains one or more types of medication to be taken at a single time of administration, and the surface of the sachet bag is printed with a figure representing the timing of administration of the contained medication, and the figure representing the timing of administration is printed at a position determined by the timing of administration, and is printed at a different position for each timing of administration.

[0009] The timing of administration may include multiple instances of the following: upon waking, before breakfast, after breakfast, before lunch, after lunch, before dinner, after dinner, and before going to bed.

[0010] The diagram indicating the timing of administration may be printed directly on the individual packaging bag, or a label with the diagram printed on it may be attached to the individual packaging bag. In this invention, printing on the surface of the individual packaging bag includes not only direct printing on the individual packaging bag, but also label printing on a label attached to the individual packaging bag.

[0011] According to this invention, since a graphic indicating the timing of administration is printed on the surface of the individual packaging bag, the timing of administration can be determined by looking at the graphic (in addition to the text). Furthermore, according to this invention, since the graphic indicating the timing of administration is printed on the surface of the individual packaging bag at a position determined by the timing of administration, and at a different position for each timing, the location where the graphic indicating the timing of administration is printed on the surface of the individual packaging bag can also be used to determine the timing of administration of the medication contained in that individual packaging bag.

[0012] A medication calendar has multiple pockets into which individual medication packets (packaged packets containing medication) are placed. In medication calendars, multiple packets for a specific dosage timing are often arranged in a single column or row. In such cases, if the symbols representing the dosage timing are printed in positions determined by the dosage timing, and in different positions for each dosage timing, it becomes easier to spot incorrect placement of the packets in the medication calendar (mis-dispensed medication) when visually inspecting multiple packets arranged in a single column or row. It becomes easy to visually confirm whether the packets are correctly (or incorrectly) placed in the medication calendar. In other words, the packets of this invention make it easier to spot incorrect placement (mis-dispensed medication) when placed in a medication calendar.

[0013] Preferably, the position where the shapes representing the timing of administration are printed is such that they are aligned in a line according to the chronological order of the administration timings. For example, in a medication calendar, if multiple individual packets containing medications to be taken on a particular day are set in the medication calendar according to the chronological order of administration timings, the shapes representing the timing of administration will shift in one direction according to the chronological order. By printing the shapes representing the timing of administration in a line according to the chronological order of administration timings, it becomes easier to understand the timing of administration for the medications contained in the individual packets, thereby encouraging correct administration.

[0014] In one embodiment, at least one of characters representing the date on which the stored drug is to be taken and characters representing the day of the week is further printed on the surface of the sub-packaging bag. This can reduce mistakes in taking the drug on the wrong date.

[0015] In other embodiments, the characters are composed of a universal design font of a predetermined size or more. This can reduce taking errors due to misreading the characters.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016] [Figure 1] It is an enlarged front view of a single-packaged sub-packaging. [Figure 2] It is an enlarged front view of a single-packaged sub-packaging. [Figure 3] It is an enlarged front view of a single-packaged sub-packaging. [Figure 4] It is an enlarged front view of a single-packaged sub-packaging. [Figure 5] It is a front view of a medicine calendar. [Figure 6] It is a block diagram of a dispensing confirmation system. [Figure 7] It shows a state of imaging a medicine calendar. [Figure 8] It shows an example of a display screen when there is a dispensing error. [Figure 9] It shows the sub-packaging management database in detail. [Figure 10] It is a flowchart showing the process flow of a dispensing confirmation device. [Figure 11] It is a flowchart showing the process flow of a dispensing confirmation device. [Figure 12] It is a flowchart showing the process flow of a dispensing confirmation device. [Figure 13] It shows the coordinate range set in the medicine calendar image part. [Figure 14] It is an enlarged front view of a single-packaged sub-packaging of other examples.

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0017] Figures 1 to 4 show enlarged front views of the surface (front) of individual drug packets (unit-dose packets). Each unit-dose packet shown in Figures 1 to 4 was prescribed to a specific patient (Taro Toshi), and while the day of administration (day of the week) is the same for all of them, the timing of administration (method of use) differs for each.

[0018] A single-dose package 1 is a package containing one or more types of medication (tablets or powders) prepared by a pharmacist according to a prescription issued by a doctor, packaged in a single bag according to the timing of administration. A packaging machine (not shown) installed in a dispensing pharmacy is used to package one or more types of medication into a single bag for each prescription timing (one dose). The bag that makes up the single-dose package 1 is formed relatively flat by folding a sheet of transparent or translucent resin film and sealing three sides, and the medication 7 is placed inside. The size of the single-dose package 1 is approximately 70 mm in length and 60-80 mm in width.

[0019] A white background ink is printed on a predetermined area of ​​the front surface of the individual-dose packaging 1 to make the text and other elements easily visible, and black text and other elements are printed on top of the white ink. Instead of directly printing the white ink and text and other elements, a label with the text and other elements printed on it may be affixed to the surface of the individual-dose packaging 1. The back surface (not shown) of the individual-dose packaging 1 is transparent or semi-transparent, and the drug 7 inside the individual-dose packaging 1 can be seen through the transparent or semi-transparent back surface. The text and other elements on the surface of the individual-dose packaging 1 are printed by a printer provided by the packaging machine or a separate printer from the packaging machine.

[0020] On the surface of the single-dose package 1, there are printed dosing timing information 2 that encloses the timing, date, and day of the week for taking the stored medicine within a rectangular frame, a package two-dimensional code 3 indicating an ID (package ID) unique to each single-dose package 1, the name 4 of the medicine taker (patient), a one-dimensional code (barcode) 5, and usage tags 6A to 6D that represent the dosing timing (usage method) by illustrations (figures). The usage tags 6A to 6D clearly show one of the four usage methods of the single-dose package 1, specifically, "after breakfast", "after lunch", "after dinner", and "before bedtime", by graphic illustrations related to the usage (each illustration of "the rising sun" (Figure 1), "the sun" (Figure 2), "the setting sun" (Figure 3), and "the moon" (Figure 4)), and are represented as tag figures protruding upward from the upper side of the rectangular frame of the dosing timing information 2.

[0021] The usage tags 6A to 6D are printed at positions determined by the dosing timing on the upper side of the rectangular frame of the dosing timing information 2, and at different positions for each dosing timing. For example, the usage tag "after breakfast" 6A (Figure 1) is always printed at the left end portion of the upper side of the rectangular frame of the dosing timing information 2. The usage tag "before bedtime" 6D (Figure 4) is always printed at the right end portion of the upper side of the rectangular frame of the dosing timing information 2. The usage tag "after lunch" 6B (Figure 2) is always printed slightly to the left between these, and the usage tag "after dinner" (Figure 3) is always printed slightly to the right. Each of the usage tags 6A to 6D is arranged in a row (the upper side of the rectangular frame of the dosing timing information 2) in the chronological order of the dosing timing.

[0022] For the font of the characters printed on the single-dose package 1, a UD (Universal Design) font, particularly a UD font with high discriminability for the Chinese characters "water" and "wood", and the numbers "3", "6", "8", and "9", is used. Also, the font size is set to 18 pt (6.35 mm) or more, taking into consideration the improvement of the accuracy of character recognition by the OCR (Optical Character Recognition) process described later and the difficulty of misreading. Furthermore, the font size of the Chinese characters representing the day of the week is the largest among the characters printed on the single-dose package 1, and is designed to make the day of the week the most prominent.

[0023] Figure 5 is a front view of the medication calendar.

[0024] The medication calendar 20 is made of cloth, paper, or plastic, with the seven days of the week (month to day) arranged vertically and the four types of dosages arranged horizontally. There are a total of 28 partitioned pockets 21 at the intersections of the days of the week and the dosages, and individual doses 1 are placed (stored) in each pocket 21 (for dispensing). The pockets 21 are made of transparent resin sheets, and the individual doses 1 placed in the pockets 21 can be seen from the outside through the pockets 21. The size of the pockets 21 is approximately 70-90 mm in width and 50-70 mm in height. Each pocket 21 may be treated with an anti-reflective coating.

[0025] The usage tags 6A-6D described above clearly indicate when a single-dose package 1 is incorrectly placed in pocket 21 of the medication calendar 20 (mis-dispensing). By focusing on usage tags 6A-6D (Figures 1-4) and looking at the seven pockets 21 arranged vertically (up and down direction of the medication calendar 20), it is easy to notice mis-dispensing of usage instructions. Referring to Figure 5, if you look at the seven pockets 21 arranged for the usage instruction "after breakfast" and the seven pockets 21 arranged for the usage instruction "after dinner," you can see that the position of the usage tags is shifted in the four single-dose packages 1 placed in pocket 21 on Tuesday. In this way, by not only changing the illustration shapes of the usage tags 6A-6D themselves, but also changing the positions of the usage tags 6A-6D, it becomes easier to notice mis-dispensing (wrong placement) when the single-dose packages 1 are set in the medication calendar 20.

[0026] Furthermore, because the font size of the characters representing the days of the week is large, by focusing on the kanji characters representing the days of the week and looking at the four pockets 21 arranged horizontally (left to right on the medication calendar 20), it becomes easier to notice mis-dispensed medication for the wrong day of the week.

[0027] Figure 6 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the medication dispensing confirmation system.

[0028] To improve the efficiency of product-oriented tasks in dispensing pharmacies and allow them to focus on patient-oriented tasks, dispensing operations, including unit-dose packaging, are sometimes outsourced. When unit-dose packaging is outsourced, the dispensing pharmacy (outsourcing pharmacy, outsourcing pharmacy) does not perform dispensing or unit-dose packaging; these tasks are performed by another pharmacy (contracting pharmacy, outsourced pharmacy). The contracting pharmacy also sets the unit-dose packaging 1 into the medication calendar 20. The medication calendar 20 with the unit-dose packaging 1 set in it is then delivered directly from the contracting pharmacy to the patient's home.

[0029] The medication dispensing verification system is used at contract pharmacies to check (audit) whether each of the individually packaged medications in the medication calendar 20, which contains the individually packaged medications, is correctly placed in each pocket 21 of the medication calendar 20 before it is delivered to the patient's home.

[0030] The individually packaged medication 1 may be placed in the medication calendar 20 by the patient or their family at the patient's home. In this case, a medication distribution confirmation system can be used to check whether the individually packaged medication 1 has been placed in the medication calendar 20 at the patient's home and whether the individually packaged medications have been correctly placed (distributed) in each pocket 21 of the medication calendar 20.

[0031] The following describes an embodiment in which the individually packaged medications 1 are set in the medication calendar 20 at the contracted pharmacy, and the medication distribution is confirmed at the contracted pharmacy.

[0032] The medication dispensing verification system includes a medication dispensing verification device 31 and a mobile terminal device 32 that are connected to a network (such as the Internet) and capable of communicating data with each other. The medication dispensing verification system is used to verify, using image data, whether the individually packaged doses 1 are correctly placed (dispensed) in each pocket 21 of the medication calendar 20 described above, and to notify (point out) any incorrect sets (incorrect dispensing).

[0033] The medication dispensing confirmation device 31 is connected to a package management database 33 that manages information for each individual package 1. Details of the package management database 33 will be described later.

[0034] The medication dispensing confirmation device 31 is a computer device that includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that oversees its overall operation, an input device for entering characters, a display device for displaying characters, images, etc., a work area, a buffer area, etc., a memory for temporarily storing data, a storage device for storing programs and data, and a communication device for sending and receiving data via a network. The dispensing management database 33 is built in the storage device of the medication dispensing confirmation device 31.

[0035] The mobile terminal device 32 is used as a transmitting terminal to send image data of the medication calendar 20 with the individually packaged medications 1 placed in the pocket 21 to the medication confirmation device 31, and as a receiving terminal to receive the results of the image audit (medication confirmation process) performed by the medication confirmation device 31 based on the above image data. A smartphone equipped with a CPU, input device, display device, memory, storage device, communication device, imaging device (camera), etc., can be used as the mobile terminal device 32. The mobile terminal device 32 is operated by a pharmacist or other person at a contracted pharmacy.

[0036] Figure 7 shows the process of taking a picture of the medication calendar 20 using the mobile terminal device 32, and Figure 8 shows an example of an error screen displayed on the mobile terminal device 32 when a medication error is detected during the image audit performed by the medication verification device 31.

[0037] Referring to Figure 7, the imaging device of the mobile terminal device 32 is activated, and the medication calendar 20 with the individually packaged medication 1 set inside is imaged. The image data obtained by imaging is transmitted from the mobile terminal device 32 to the medication verification device 31 via the network. The medication verification device 31 uses the received image data representing the medication calendar 20 to perform the medication verification process described later. The processing result is transmitted from the medication verification device 31 to the mobile terminal device 32 via the network. If there is a medication error, an error screen is displayed on the display screen of the mobile terminal device 32 (Figure 8).

[0038] Referring to Figure 8, the error screen displayed on the mobile terminal device 32 when there is a medication misdelivery clearly shows the location of the pocket 21 containing the misdelivered medication among the images of multiple pockets 21 (images of the unit-dose packaging 1) included in the image representing the medication calendar 20. To clearly show the pocket 21 containing the misdelivered medication, as described later, the medication verification device 31 creates an image (misdelivery image) by superimposing a thick border image 25 surrounding the pocket 21 containing the misdelivered medication onto the image of the medication calendar 20 captured by the mobile terminal device 32. Since the pocket 21 containing the misdelivered medication is clearly shown in the misdelivery image, the misdelivery of the unit-dose packaging 1 can be easily corrected. The medication calendar 20 with the corrected misdelivery can also be photographed again, and the medication verification process in the medication verification device 31 can be run again.

[0039] Figure 9 shows the data structure of the package management database 33.

[0040] The dispensing management database 33 shown in Figure 9 represents a database that corresponds to the partial outsourcing of drug preparation services (dispensing services), including unit-dose packaging (outsourcing of certain drug preparation services at a pharmacy to an external party at the discretion of the pharmacy, while respecting the patient's wishes and needs). "Outsourcing" (outsourcing party) refers to the party that outsources the preparation services (outsourcing source), and "Contracting" (contracting party) refers to the party that accepts the above preparation services (outsourcing partner).

[0041] The packaging management database 33 stores information about the consignor (client), information about the contractor (contractor), and information about the consigned project.

[0042] Information regarding the client (contractor) is stored in the following databases: Contracted Pharmacist Master 11A, Contracted Pharmacy Master 11B, and Patient Master 11C. Contracted Pharmacist Master 11A stores the Contracted Pharmacist ID to identify the contracted pharmacist, the Contracted Pharmacy ID to identify the contracted pharmacy to which the contracted pharmacist identified by the Contracted Pharmacist ID belongs, the contracted pharmacist's name, contact information, etc. Contracted Pharmacy Master 11B stores the Contracted Pharmacy ID to identify the contracted pharmacy, the pharmacy name, address, contact information, etc. of the contracted pharmacy identified by the Contracted Pharmacy ID. The Contracted Pharmacist Master 11A and Contracted Pharmacy Master 11B are linked by the Contracted Pharmacy ID. Patient Master 11C stores the Patient ID to identify the patient, the Contracted Pharmacy ID to identify the contracted pharmacy that received the prescription for the patient identified by the Patient ID, the patient's name, gender, date of birth, address, etc. The Contracted Pharmacy Master 11B and Patient Master 11C are linked by the Contracted Pharmacy ID.

[0043] Information regarding the contractor (outsourced party) is stored in the Contracted Pharmacist Master 12A, Contracted Worker Master 12B, and Stored Drug Master 12C. The Contracted Pharmacist Master 12A stores the Contracted Pharmacist ID to identify the contracted pharmacist belonging to the contracted pharmacy, the name of the contracted pharmacist identified by the Contracted Pharmacist ID, contact information, etc. The Contracted Worker Master 12B stores the Contracted Worker ID to identify the contracted worker belonging to the contracted pharmacy, the name of the contracted worker identified by the Contracted Worker ID, contact information, etc. The Stored Drug Master 12C stores the drug code to identify the drug stored by the contracted pharmacy, the name of the drug identified by the drug code, inventory quantity, etc.

[0044] Information regarding outsourced projects includes the following tables, which are stored when a contracting pharmacy requests drug preparation services, including unit-dose packaging, from a contracting pharmacy: Unit-dose packaging outsourcing information table 13A, Unit-dose packaging outsourcing details information table 13B, Packaging information table 13C, Packaging repair information table 13D, Set status table 13E, Set repair information table 13F, Medicine bag table 13G, Medicine bag repair information table 13H, and Machine audit information table 13I.

[0045] The unit-dose packaging outsourcing information table 13A stores information such as a unit-dose packaging outsourcing information ID to identify outsourced work (outsourcing case) including unit-dose packaging, a contracting pharmacy ID of the outsourcing pharmacy that outsourced the unit-dose packaging work, a contracting pharmacist ID of the contracting pharmacist in charge belonging to the outsourcing pharmacy, a contracting pharmacist ID of the contracting pharmacist in charge belonging to the receiving pharmacy, a contracting worker ID of the contracting worker in charge belonging to the receiving pharmacy, a patient ID, the prescription period, issue date, expiration date of the prescription, specification of the packaging method (roll type, medication calendar, dispensing tray, etc.), delivery destination information (address, facility name, recipient name, etc.), a two-dimensional code for outsourcing information, and a work completion status (flag). The unit-dose packaging outsourcing information table 13A is associated with the aforementioned contracting pharmacist master 11A, contracting pharmacy master 11B, receiving pharmacist master 12A, and contracting worker master 12B.

[0046] The unit-dose packaging order details table 13B stores the unit-dose packaging order information ID, drug details number, drug code, prescribed quantity, etc. The unit-dose packaging order information table 13A and the unit-dose packaging order details table 13B are linked by the unit-dose packaging order information ID. The stored drug master 12C is also linked to the unit-dose packaging order details table 13B.

[0047] The packaging information table 13C is a table created for each individual packaging package 1 described above, and stores the packaging ID that identifies each individual packaging package 1, the packaging outsourcing information ID, the coordinate range (described later), the date of administration, the day of the week of administration, the time of administration (timing, method of use), the auditing device confirmation status (flag), the outsourcing pharmacist confirmation status (flag), the receiving pharmacist confirmation status (flag), and the packaging two-dimensional code. The packaging outsourcing information table 13A and the packaging information table 13C are linked by the packaging outsourcing information ID.

[0048] The package repair information table 13D is created for each defective (defective) single-dose package 1, and stores the package ID, repair information number, timestamp, verifier ID, repairer ID, defect details (selectable), details of defect details, repair method (selectable), details of repair method, repair status (flag), and details of the repair work for the defective single-dose package 1. The package ID links the package information table 13C and the package repair information table 13D.

[0049] The set status table 13E is a table that stores the audit (verification) results of whether the unit-dose package 1 is correctly set according to the set method specified in the "Specification of Set Method" of the unit-dose package outsourcing information table 13A described above. It stores the unit-dose package outsourcing information ID, set status detail number, timestamp, verification image, contracted pharmacist verification status (flag), commissioned pharmacist verification status (flag), etc. The unit-dose package outsourcing information table 13A and the set status table 13E are associated by the unit-dose package outsourcing information ID.

[0050] The set repair information table 13F is a table created for sets with defects (for example, medication calendar 20) where defects have been discovered. It stores information such as the unit-dose packaging order information ID, set status detail number, repair information number, verifier ID, corrector ID, timestamp, details of the defect, details of the repair method, repair status (flag), and details of the repair work. The unit-dose packaging order information ID is associated with the unit-dose packaging order information table 13A, and the set status detail number is associated with the set status table 13E.

[0051] The medicine bag table 13G is a table that stores the audit (verification) results when a single-dose package 1 is placed in a medicine bag, and stores the single-dose package order information ID, medicine bag detail number, medicine bag PDF information, timestamp, verification image, contracted pharmacist verification status (flag), contracted pharmacist verification status (flag), etc. The single-dose package order information table 13A and the medicine bag table 13G are linked by the single-dose package order information ID.

[0052] The medicine bag repair information table 13H is created for medicine bags with defects (defects discovered), and stores information such as the unit-dose packaging order information ID, medicine bag item number, repair information number, verifier ID, corrector ID, timestamp, details of the defect, details of the repair method, repair status (flag), and details of the repair work. The unit-dose packaging order information ID is linked to the unit-dose packaging order information table 13A, and the medicine bag item number is linked to the medicine bag table 13G.

[0053] The machine audit information table 13I is a table that stores the results of machine audits performed on each individual package 1, specifically image audits by an image matching machine (not shown), and stores package ID, machine audit number, timestamp, audit image, audit information details, and correction information from the contracted pharmacist. The package ID links the package information table 13C and the machine audit information table 13I.

[0054] For each individual dose 1, the contract pharmacy uses an image verification device (not shown) to verify whether the drug 7 is correctly packaged. The image verification device takes an image of the individual dose 1 from its back side and uses the information obtained by analyzing the image (quantity of drug packaged in individual dose 1, shape, dimensions, color, markings, etc.) to determine whether the drug 7 is correctly packaged in individual dose 1. If a medicine bag (not shown) is used, the image is also used to determine whether the printed contents of the medicine bag are correct. For example, if an error is found in the drug contained in individual dose 1 and it is corrected, the correction information is registered in the package correction information table 13D. The same applies to medicine bags.

[0055] As described below, the medication dispensing verification device 31 is used to determine whether the individual-dose package 1 is correctly set in the medication calendar 20, and if it is repaired, the repair information is registered in the set repair information table 13F. Registering the repair information can improve the accuracy of medication dispensing verification.

[0056] Figures 10 to 12 are flowcharts showing the processing flow of the medication dispensing confirmation device 31.

[0057] The mobile terminal device 32 captures an image of the medication calendar 20, and the image data including the medication calendar 20 is transmitted from the mobile terminal device 32 to the medication confirmation device 31. The medication confirmation device 31 receives the image data including the medication calendar 20 transmitted by the mobile terminal device 32 (step 40).

[0058] From the image represented by the received image data, the portion of the image representing the medication calendar 20 (the image with all parts other than the medication calendar 20 removed) is trimmed by image cropping, and the trimmed medication calendar image is resized to a predetermined size, for example, 750 pixels wide and 1060 pixels high (step 41).

[0059] A coordinate range is set for each image portion of pocket 21 included in the medication calendar image (for example, temporarily stored in memory) (step 42).

[0060] Figure 13 shows the coordinate ranges 1 to 28 set for each of the 28 pocket 21 image portions included in the medication calendar image portion 20A after the trimming and resizing processes described above. The medication calendar 20 has 28 pockets 21, and the medication calendar image portion 20A includes 28 pocket image portions. Each of the 28 pocket image portions is assigned a coordinate range of 1 to 28.

[0061] The coordinate range 1 to 28 is represented by a pair of coordinate data points, specifically the upper left and lower right corners, with the upper left corner of the medication calendar image portion 20A being the origin (0,0). This indicates the size and position of the rectangular range.

[0062] The medication calendar 20 provided to patients by contracted pharmacies is generally of a specific type, and the positions of the pockets 21 on the medication calendar 20, i.e., the coordinate ranges 1 to 28 that indicate the position and range of each pocket image portion (the pair of coordinate data for the two locations mentioned above), are known. Therefore, in the setting process for coordinate ranges 1 to 28 (step 42), the coordinate ranges 1 to 28 are stored in the storage device of the medication confirmation device 31 in advance, and these can simply be read into memory.

[0063] If there are multiple types of medication calendars 20, and one of them is given to the patient, then the coordinate range 1 to 28 should be stored in the memory device for each type of medication calendar 20. When transmitting medication calendar image data from the mobile terminal device 32, the type information (such as the product number) of the captured medication calendar 20 may also be transmitted.

[0064] Returning to Figure 10, the character information that should be included within each coordinate range is set (for example, temporarily stored in memory) (step 43).

[0065] The character information that should be included in each of the coordinate ranges from coordinate range 1 to coordinate range 28 is stored in the package information table 13C of the package management database 33. Specifically, the package information table 13C stores the package ID, date of administration, day of the week of administration, and time of administration (dosage) for each individual package 1, as well as the coordinate range (or its number) (Figure 9). As a result, for example, the character information that should be included in "coordinate range 1" can be read from the package information table 13C, such as "after breakfast" (time of administration (dosage)), "December 25th" (date of administration), and "month" (day of the week of administration). The same applies to the other coordinate ranges 2 to 28. In the following explanation, the character information set in step 43, that is, the character information that should be included in each coordinate range stored in the package information table 13C, will be referred to as "correct character information".

[0066] OCR (Optical Character Recognition) analysis is performed on the cropped and resized portion 20A of the medication calendar image (step 44). The OCR analysis extracts the characters contained in the medication calendar image portion 20A, and the coordinate range (position information) of the extracted characters is extracted.

[0067] The OCR analysis process can extract not only the characters contained in the medication calendar image portion 20A, but also words composed of multiple characters and their coordinate ranges. Dictionary data can be used to extract words. Based on the sequence of extracted characters and the dictionary data, words contained in the medication calendar image portion 20A are extracted, and the coordinate positions (location information) of the extracted words are also extracted. Hereafter, the character information extracted by the OCR analysis process will be referred to as "extracted character information".

[0068] For example, the word "after breakfast" contained in the medication calendar image portion 20A can be extracted using OCR analysis. The coordinate position of the word is represented by a set of coordinate data for four locations: the upper left corner, upper right corner, lower left corner, and lower right corner, with the upper left corner of the medication calendar image portion 20A being the origin (0,0).

[0069] Next, the extracted character information and the correct character information are compared for each coordinate range (Step 45).

[0070] Referring to Figure 11, the counter i is initially initialized (i=1) (step 46), and the character information with location information within coordinate range 1 from the extracted character information extracted by the OCR analysis process is read into memory. Then, by comparing it with the correct character information that should be included within coordinate range 1 stored in the packaging information table 13C, it is determined whether the extracted character information within coordinate range 1 is appropriate (step 47).

[0071] For example, suppose the extracted character information in the OCR analysis process in step 44 for coordinate range 1 is "After breakfast", "12 / 25", "Monday", and "Patent Taro". Then, suppose the correct character information for coordinate range 1 set in step 43 (information stored in the package information table 13C) is "After breakfast", "20241225", and "Monday". In this case, since the extracted character information in the OCR analysis process ("After breakfast", "12 / 25", "Monday", and "Patent Taro") contains all of the correct character information ("After breakfast", "20241225", and "Monday") (12 / 25 is judged to be the same as 20241225), it is determined that the correct single-dose package 1 has been delivered to coordinate range 1 (YES in step 47). The counter i is incremented, and the process proceeds to the determination for coordinate range 2 (NO in step 48, steps 50, and 47).

[0072] Assume that the incorrect placement of the single-dose package 1 into pocket 21, i.e., misdelivery, means that not all of the correct character information is included in the extracted character information during the OCR analysis process in step 44. For example, the OCR analysis process extracts "after lunch", "12 / 25", "Monday", and "Patent Taro", while the correct character information is set to "after breakfast", "20241225", and "Monday". In this case, since the extracted character information "after lunch" is not included in the correct character information, it is determined that the correct single-dose package 1 has not been delivered to its coordinate range i (misdelivery) (NO in step 47). In this case, error processing is performed to identify (record) the coordinate range i where the misdelivery occurred (step 49).

[0073] Once the determination for all coordinate ranges 1 to 28 is complete (YES in step 48), it is determined whether the character information for all coordinate range i is correct (step 52). If it is determined that the character information for all coordinate range i is correct, that is, that the correct single-dose packaging 1 is set in all pockets 21 (YES in step 52), data indicating this is transmitted from the medication confirmation device 31 to the mobile terminal device 32. For example, a large circle is displayed on the display screen of the mobile terminal device 32 (not shown), and the user of the mobile terminal device 32 is notified that the correct single-dose packaging 1 is set in each pocket 21 of the imaged medication calendar 20.

[0074] On the other hand, if there is a coordinate range with errors (NO in step 52), an image is created in which the coordinate range with errors is highlighted, for example, by superimposing a thick-bordered image onto the medication calendar image portion 20A (hereinafter referred to as misdelivery image data), and page data including the misdelivery image data is transmitted from the medication confirmation device 31 to the mobile terminal device 32 (Figure 8).

[0075] The page containing the image of the incorrectly dispensed medication (Figure 8) also displays an error message that reads "There is a medication error." Because the error message is displayed and the portion of the pocket image (coordinate range) containing the incorrectly dispensed medication is highlighted by a thick-bordered image 25, the user of the mobile terminal device 32 can easily notice the existence of the medication error and the pocket 21 containing the incorrect medication, and correct the misdistribution.

[0076] If there is a set error (misdelivery) in the single-dose packaging 1, the details of the error, a timestamp, etc. are recorded in the set repair information table 13F of the packaging management database 33 (step 55). The page containing the misdelivery image (Figure 8) includes a "corrected" button, and when the user of the mobile terminal device 32 corrects the misdelivery and taps the "corrected" button, the ID of the person who performed the repair, details of the repair work, etc. are recorded in the set repair information table 13F. Of course, the imaging device can also be restarted on the mobile terminal device 32 and the above process can be repeated.

[0077] In addition to medication verification by OCR analysis using the medication verification device 31, medication verification may also be performed visually by a worker (pharmacist), in which case the medication verification will focus on the usage tags 6A to 6D printed on the individual-dose packaging 1.

[0078] In the embodiment described above, a medication calendar 20 was shown as an example in which the seven days of the week, from Monday to Sunday, are arranged vertically. However, a medication calendar in which the dates from the 1st to the 31st are arranged vertically instead of the days of the week may also be used.

[0079] Figure 14 shows a single-dose packaging 1A of another embodiment. It differs from single-dose packaging 1 shown in Figure 1 in the arrangement of various information, particularly in that the name of the drug user (patient) 4 is printed in larger letters. Single-dose packaging 1A, with the drug user's name printed in large letters, is used when the drug user resides in a facility.

[0080] The dosage tag 6A, which illustrates the timing (method of administration), is represented as a tag shape that protrudes downward from the bottom edge of the rectangular frame of the timing of administration information 2. In the single-dose packaging 1A, each of the multiple types of dosage tags is printed in a position determined by the timing of administration, and in a different position for each timing, arranged in chronological order of the timing of administration. With the single-dose packaging 1A, it is also easy to notice misdelivery (wrong setting) when it is set in the medication calendar 20. [Explanation of symbols]

[0081] 1,1A single package 6A~6D Usage Tags 7. Medications 13C Packaging Information Table 20 Medication Calendar 20A Medication calendar image section 21 pockets 25 Thick-bordered images 31. Medication Dispensing Verification Device 32 Mobile terminal devices

Claims

1. A sachet containing one or more types of medication to be taken at a single time of administration, The surface of the above-mentioned individual packaging bag has a diagram printed on it that indicates the timing of taking the medication. The diagram representing the timing of administration is printed in a position determined by the timing of administration, and in a different position for each timing of administration. sachets.

2. The above timings for taking the medication include multiple of the following: upon waking, before breakfast, after breakfast, before lunch, after lunch, before dinner, after dinner, and before going to bed. The packaging bag according to claim 1.

3. The positions where the diagrams representing the timing of administration are printed are in a line, following the chronological order of the administration timings. The packaging bag according to claim 1.

4. The surface of the above-mentioned sachet bag is further printed with at least one of the following: a date indicating when the medication should be taken, or a day of the week. The packaging bag according to claim 1.

5. The above characters are composed of universal design fonts of a specified size or larger. The packaging bag according to claim 4.

Images