Modern medicine allows people to fight many diseases more effectively, but with this also comes the problem of polypharmacy, i.e. taking many different drugs. According to the National Health Service’s 2020 report, more than half of Poles have been ill with at least one lifestyle disease in the past five years. 4.5 million people bought prescriptions for five or more active substances in six months.
Author | Bartłomiej Biegun |
|---|---|
Services | Research, Product Design |
Used Apps | Mural, Figma |
Problem
Research confirms that the problem is real. More than half (56 per cent) of Poles have suffered or are still suffering from at least one disease of civilisation in the last five years, such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, cancer, diabetes or depression. The number of people continuously taking medication continues to rise. 4.5 million people bought prescriptions for five or more active substances in a six-month period. (NHF report: Everything you need to know about poly-pragmasy, 2020).
Solution
In the course of developing a suitable solution, a series of studies were carried out to explain the problem of the increasing use of medicines by Poles and to provide an insight into the daily process of dealing with illness. Desk research and in-depth interviews (IDI) with respondents were used to find an appropriate solution. The research was conducted in person or using the Google Meet tool.
Features
Effective notification system
Notifications that clearly and unambiguously remind users that they need to take their medication at the given dose. Notifications require the user to take an action to confirm that the medication has been taken.
Building positive habits
The easy-to-use functionality of the planner and the view of upcoming medication events make it more user-friendly for patients to start the pharmacotherapy process and develop appropriate habits.
Controlling the quantity of medicines in the medicine cabinet
The user has full control over the number of medicines in their home medicine cabinet. By looking at the status table for each medicine on his phone, he does not have to make a special trip to the medicine drawer.
Medical appointments
Users who are, as it were, often condemned to sitting in doctors’ surgeries can support their therapy with the use of adding medical appointments to the app’s schedule.
Measurements and statistics
The Pill Please app allows measurements of key indicators to be added to the app. Among the measurements that can be added are glucose, temperature, weight, saturation and pulse and blood pressure.
