New MedicineList App for Managing Medicines

NPS MedicineWise has launched a new free app, MedicineList+, for Android and iOS devices which is designed to help  patients know about and manage their medicines, as well as record important health information.

The app is also capable of keeping track of more than one person’s medicines list, a feature that will be useful for parents and carers of older family members.
NPS MedicineWise clinical advisor Dr Philippa Binns says health professionals should recommend the MedicineList+ app to their patients, especially those who use three or more prescription, over-the-counter or complementary medicines every day.
“We know that keeping a medicines list is an important part of being medicinewise and preventing medicines mistakes. But according to our recent survey* of people aged 65 years or older or their carers, only 55% of older Australians keep a list of their medicines while 30% have no way of keeping track of them at all, which is not ideal,” says Dr Binns.
Of those people who do keep a medicines list, almost all keep track of their prescription medicines but only 60% list their over-the-counter medicines, and just 55% list their complementary medicines. What’s more, 54% of people who keep a medicines list said they do not update it every time they stop or start a new medicine, and only 48% said they would take their list with them every time they visited a health professional.
“The new MedicineList+ app can make it easier for patients to list all the medicines they’re taking, keep the list up to date, and have the information on hand when they visit any health professional,” says Dr Binns.
“MedicineList+ can also help you to get a fuller picture of what’s happening with your patients’ health outside of your care, and fill the gaps around the medicines you don’t know they are using — especially complementary medicines. It could also help your patients to take their medicines every day, for example, through the reminder functionality.”
Top six features of the new MedicineList+ app

• Generate a handy list of medicines which patients can email, print or save for sharing with family members, carers or health professionals.


• Scan the barcode from the medicine’s packaging to enter it straight into the medicines list, or enter details manually.


• Create multiple user profiles, each with personal details — great for helping family members to manage their medicines.


• Set a reminder for individual medicine doses or for general medicine reminders, e.g. the next due dose of a vaccine.


• Record medical test data, e.g. blood pressure, weight, height and INR, and graph these over time.


• Add free text and notes, for example store details of health professionals, and create notes and general health reminders including allergies and emergency contacts.

 
The NPS MedicineWise Medicines List will continue to be available as a paper product — supplies can be ordered free from NPS MedicineWise. It is also available as an online form and as a PDF download on the NPS MedicineWise website. To find out about all the different ways to access a medicines list and to order stock for your health care setting visit www.nps.org.au/medicineslist.
Individual medicines list data is stored locally on the app, and no data is shared with NPS MedicineWise or publicly.
To find out more and to download the apps for Android phones and devices and for Apple phones and devices, go to www.nps.org.au/medicinelist-plus.
* Survey of 796 people aged 65 years or older or their carers conducted in July/August 2013 by UMR Research