BlisPack^®: a system which automates blister pack cutting and the electronic identification of medicines for hospital use

11/11/2009

This system, the only one of its kind in Europe, helps reduce medication errors by simplifying the process of packing unit doses of medicines and ensuring their identification using a bar code with a format which can be customised by the individual hospital.

The system is the product of research and development by a multi-disciplinary team bringing together members from Grifols Hospital division and Grifols Engineering.

Grifols, a Spanish holding company which specializes in the hospital pharmacy sector, is one of the leading companies in the development of products and services for hospital pharmacy. The company has created an automated system for the cutting, packing and automatic identification of blister packs of medicines for hospital use: BlisPack^®.

BlisPack^® simplifies the process of packing medicines in unit doses, and ensures their identification using a bar code system which can be configured to reflect the needs of the hospital (and to integrate with other electronic systems in the future), helping to reduce errors in the administration of medicines to hospital patients by enabling nurses to electronically check that the medicine to be administered matches the one prescribed for that patient by the doctor.

BlisPack^® answers the needs of hospitals which usually receive medicines from the pharmaceutical industry in blister packs which until now had to be divided into unit doses manually, because there was no other way of doing this. BlisPack^® automates the cutting of blister packs, and the process of obtaining unit doses of the medicine, while preserving the manufacturer's original packaging.

No additional installation is required when incorporating BlisPack^® in hospitals. It can be located in any medicine preparation area with an electricity supply and a local network connection.