CA3061876A1 - Compliance system - Google Patents

Abstract There is provided a system for monitoring a package, monitoring compliance of a user with health related activities, assisting a user with compliance, encouraging a user to comply and detecting compliance. CA 3061876 2019-11-16

COMPLIANCE SYSTEM
Devices for monitoring, recording and downloading medication compliance data for vials, bottles, syringes and blister packages are well known. Allan Wilson, Michael Petersen, Dean Brotzel, Jakob Ehrensvaerd and Stina Grip, amongst others, have described such devices for blister packaged medication, for example US Patent Nos. 7,113,101, 7,178,417, 6,628,199, 6,244,462, 7,170,409, .10 6,616,035, 7,616,116 and 7,772,974; PCT applications WO/2009/135283, and WO 2013/159198 Al; Canadian application No. 2353350 and US Publication Nos.
20070278285, 20080191174 and 20080053222. Such devices are commonly referred to as smart packages.
Encouraging patients to adhere to medication dosage regimes can be difficult, while further ensuring that the medication dosage regimes are followed can be critical. Many patients take several medications each day, each medication having a different dosage regime and requiring different quantities. Furthermore, each medication often has dosage requirements, timing requirements, food intake requirements and other related elements, which can be difficult for a user to track.
In one aspect, there is provided a compliance system, comprising a scanning device which receives one or more health related activities as an input from a user.
The compliance system has a slider for allotting a time interval and a counter for allotting dosing frequency. A series of one or more clocks are connected to the slider and the counter wherein the clocks set the time during a predetermined time period for performing one of the health related activities based on the dosing frequency and time interval. In one example, the compliance system further comprises a code on a package, wherein the scanning device scans the code, determines the contents of the package and inserts the type of contents as one of the health related activities in the scanning device.
In a further aspect and example, there is provided a compliance system that operates in conjunction with a smart cap or smart blister package containing medication therein. The smart cap or blister package has a scan code associated with it, for example, a barcode, RFID chip, NEC or QR code. The user can scan the code with a scanning device. The user then uses a time slider device and a series of clocks that are based on the number of doses of medication required by the user in that time period. As the user adjusts the slider, each clock is adjusted to provide the user with the new times for taking the medication during that particular time period, based on the number of doses required during the time period and the slider time interval between doses. A user can adjust the number of doses and time interval. The user moves the slider to adjust the time between doses. By adjusting the time between doses, the user can control the times for taking the medication.
The time period is usually a day, but it could be a different period of time, such as the span of multiple days, a week, a month or any other time period that is reasonable for the timing requirements.
In one example, the scanning device can be set up to avoid setting dosage times overnight when the user would be sleeping. As another example, if the user has an activity at a particular time during that day, say for example 2:00pm, such that the user would not be able to take their medication at that time, the user can adjust the time slider until a better, more convenient, dosage time is obtained.
The scanning device can be any example of hand-held scanner, such as an RFID
tag reader, a smart phone, a tablet, or any other type of scanner.
Furthermore, the scanning device can operate with a smart phone or can alternatively be integrated into the smart phone.

2 In another aspect, there is provided a compliance system that assists a user in setting up family health. The system can be used for multiple family members concurrently by setting up a different profile for each family member. In one example, the scanning device enables the user to set up, not only dosage times, but also times for other health related daily activities, such as exercise or movement activities. For example, a user might be required to walk for 10 minutes three times a day, or a physiotherapist might require a patient to practice standing 5 times a day. In one example, such repetitive daily activities can be entered into the scanning device and scheduled along with medication dosage times or other health related activities.
In another example, the compliance system can assist a user in scheduling all health aspects of their life, for example, but not limited to, exercise, food preparation, food consumption, meal times, medication dosage times, meditation, and other lifestyle related items. For example, this could be useful for a user who must schedule certain medications with meals and other medications away from meals, or for a user who must take certain medications at separate times throughout the day to reduce the likelihood of drug interactions.
In another aspect, there is provided a compliance system in which a user can receive reminders or alarms at the appropriate time for the health related activity.
The reminders can be sent to the scanning device, to one or more cell phones via text message or SMS message, to the email address of the user, to a telephone call, or to any other manner of reminder system selected by the user.
In a further aspect, use data from the compliance system and/or scanning device can be sent to a physician, psychologist or other health practitioner in order to track the compliance of the user to the lifestyle requirements prescribed by the health practitioner. In order to communicate such information, the scanning device can have a transmitter and receiver for transmitting the compliance data to a cloud,

3 server or other database. The scanning device can store the compliance data in internal storage memory. Alternatively, the scanning device might not have internal storage and instead, the scanning device can periodically poll the compliance system and transmit the results to the cloud, server or other database without storage. Alternatively, the scanning device can include storage memory for temporary or permanent storage of the data along with periodic transmission of the data to the cloud, server, other database or other administrator.
In another aspect, there is a provided a compliance system in which the user receives rewards for good compliance. In one example, the reward system could comprise either positive or negative reinforcement to encourage the user to comply with the dosage regime or other health related activities. For example, negative reinforcement could include payment by the user of a sum of money in advance after which the user receives a dollar or set amount back for compliance, such as for each pound or for pain reduction due to weight loss.
In one example, such a reward system can be tracked and implemented by the scanning device and/or through communication from the scanning device to the cloud, server, database or other administrator. In this example, the reward system encourages the user to comply with the dosage regime or other health related activities. The reward system could involve coupons from stores at which the user generally shops. Other alternatives for a reward system include, but are not limited to, discounts, credits towards future purchases, or other monetary forms of reward.
In one example, the compliance system tracks the compliance of the user and uses behaviour modification through the reward system to increase compliance through provision of rewards to the user.
In a further aspect, the smart package or smart cap could have a button or other indicator which a patient would push or mark each time a dose was removed. The smart package or smart cap would record this information, which would be made available when the scanning device scans the code. As an alternative, the button

4 could be provided on the scanning device so a user could mark off the completion of the health related activity. As a further alternative, the smart cap or smart blister package could auto-record the removal of a dose, along with the time, temperature or other related environmental conditions at the time of removal. The smart cap or smart blister package can then either store the results in internal storage and/or communicate the results to the scanning device either at periodic intervals or only when scanned by the scanning device.
In one example involving various aspects, the health practitioner can set up a schedule on the compliance system for one or more health related activities for the user. The health practitioner could have the ability to lock the schedule in part or in full so that the user receives the completed schedule or so the user is able to set the times of use each day through the slider device. Alternatively, the user could enter all health related activities into the compliance system. As a further alternative, the user could scan the smart package or smart cap, which enables the scanning device to enter the medication into the compliance system, which proposed or fixed dosage regimes. When the user completes a scheduled health related activity or task, the user can indicate completion through a push button or other indicator and the compliance system can record the time of completion.
As the user increases compliance, the compliance system can provide the user with rewards and incentives, which will further encourage the user to increase compliance.
FIG. 1 depicts an example display of an example app or computing program on the scanning device and some sample information that the scanning device can show.
In one example embodiment, the scanning device can be updated based on information the scanner receives from the cloud, server, database or other administrator.

5 It will be appreciated by one skilled in the art that variants can exist in the above-described arrangements and applications. For example, the code could be provided on a package other than a medication package, smart package or smart cap. The scope of the claims should not be limited by the preferred embodiments set forth in the examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole.

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What is claimed is: