VIPColor launches medical verification platform

California, USA-based VIPColor Technologies has created a pharmaceutical application that reduces medical errors through the use of color printing with its VIPColor 485e digital printer linked to dedicated software. The application permits the pharmacist to compare the actual medication against a color image of the product. The patient can also verify if the image on the label matches the medication in the container and any difference between the two can immediately be identified. 

The combined technologies of printer and software offer an effective combination that can be used by any hospital or pharmacy. The software can be programmed to access databases and retrieve and print variable data, such as prescription and record numbers, patient names and personal information. In addition data such as dispensing date, quantity, frequency and duration of medication can also be included along with safety instructions and warning signs. The result is full color labels showing the appearance of the medication that can be used to cross match the product, complete with all the necessary text and data required. 

‘We have already supplied twenty VIPColor 485e printers for this application to hospitals in Taiwan,’ said Dr Jules Farkas of VIPColor Europe. ‘Major hospitals in the region are transitioning to color in order to print labels that can be compared against the medication. Hospitals and pharmacies can print on label blanks the same day that they are required avoiding the problems, costs and waste associated with traditional pre-printed labels. More importantly, this application is enabling them to reduce medication errors and save lives.’ 

The American Institute of Medicine states that medication errors account for at least 7,000 deaths in the United States alone each year. Around 20 percent of these errors are reportedly deemed due to administering incorrect medical products. In addition, the American Medical Association estimates that over 770,000 patients are injured because of medication errors every year. 

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