On demand controlled substances dispensing at the point of care (NarcoMedic®)

NarcoMedic is a product from Pearson Medical Technologies. Pearson is a small company out of Alexandria, LA. They’ve made a business out of bar code labeling and packaging technologies. You’re probably most familiar with their iPackRx unit dose packager and m:Print software; either as the direct product or possibly as an OEM’d version for another company.

A colleague sent me a marketing email a few days ago from Pearson announcing NarcoMedic, a “decentralized management platform” for controlled substances. It caught my attention as I thought about something like this several years ago.

As with other automated dispensing units, NarcoMedic is designed to dispense medications at the point of care, i.e. nursing unit. With that said, what caught my attention were the following points:

• Tabletop design – 38”H x 23”L x 32”D. Med rooms tend to be cramped. It’s nice to have the option for a small unit.
• Packages and dispenses in individual patient-specific bar coded packages (packages on demand from storage locations)
• Packages and dispenses tablets, vials, ampules and syringes in individual packages.

Pretty interesting. As I said, it’s not a new concept, but perhaps it’s time has come. Regardless, it’s nice to see someone out there trying something new.

From the Pearson email:

Only NarcoMedic® Offers all these features:

• Packages and dispenses tablets, vials, ampoules and syringes in individual patient-specific bar coded packages on demand
• 100% Secure Narcotics storage at the Nurses Station
• 100% Pharmacy Control with 24/7 Nurse access
• No More Narcotics Counts Required by Nurses
• Stores up to 98 Controlled Substances (1,750 doses) in a tabletop unit
• Robotic control – no human access to narcotics and controlled substances
• Automatically dispenses only the authorized dose
• Unit Dose Package printed and sealed automatically on Demand
• Each Dose is printed with Patient Name, Drug Information, Prescription and Bar Code
• Fast and Easy System Installation
• NarcoSoft® – the management software – runs on existing Hospital server – no additional computer hardware required
• Handles tablets, vials, ampoules, capsules and syringes
• High Density Storage at the Nursing Station in compact 38”H x 23”L x 32”D unit
• Complete remote pharmacy control
• No Cross-Contamination of tablets and capsules
• Complete and Flexible Reports – Documented Audit Trail
• Optional CabMedic® Drawer System available (as stand-alone or as an auxiliary to the NarcoMedic®)
• Optional CabMedic® Tower Cabinet with or without refrigerator