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NOVATO, Calif. — Approximately 35,000 emergency department (ED) visits result from unintentional medication overdoses among children under the age of 5. In many instances, medications had been removed from child-resistant packaging and placed into pill organizers. Recognizing the problem and need for a product solution, 4Thought Products has launched Pill Pod 7 Day Secure.
It is an innovative secure medication container that promotes medication adherence and provides portability and convenience while providing safety around children. The patented system consists of a combination locking tray and container which secures an extra-large weekly pill organizer held within. The organizer’s seven compartments can be set up for daily dosages, or can accommodate a 30+ day supply of seven different medications. It can alternatively be used, without the organizer, to secure a variety of vials – up to (6) 13 dram, as well as liquid bottles.
With changes in legalization of cannabis, there is a need for safe, lockable storage in homes with children. This is especially the case with infused edibles that resemble candy. The product serves as a broad solution to address several overlapping problems – child poisoning (Rx drugs and cannabis edibles), pilfering of meds/abuse, and drug diversion from palliative care or hospice patients. With distribution of opioid settlement funds, counties and cities are seeking new tools to combat the epidemic. Prevention, which includes locking/safe storage and disposal of unused medications, can be included in their qualified abatement programs.
According to Nation Center for Drug Abuse Statistics, 75% of prescription abusers receive the drugs from a friend, relative, or healthcare provider.According to a Few prescribed patients closely track their medications, making it difficult to recognize the routine disappearance of pills. The product is intended for use as a medication lock box to help prevent drug additions from initiating.
In addition to being child-safe, Pill Pod 7 Day Secure™ is senior-friendly and simple to use. Each comes preset with its own 4-digit unlocking combination – like a padlock, and requires no setup to use.
“The product was designed for anyone who may have weak or limited finger strength/ dexterity, an arthritic condition, or vision impairment. Unlike existing child-resistant caps, a fresh approach was taken to eliminate the physical challenges that seniors experience in accessibility. The tumblers are large, rotate freely, and are easily viewable with large font and high contrast. Now people can conveniently store medications where they want and have peace of mind knowing that they’ll be keeping them out of the wrong hands,” states company founder and inventor of the product Steve Small.
Pill Pod 7 Day Secure has been designed from a “clean sheet of paper” and engineered to be both light weight, strong, and secure with “pick-resistant” features. The security features cannot be easily bypassed – a deficiency with most lock boxes using briefcase style metal combination latches, as well as some combination locking caps for vials. Its design/appearance is intended to fit discretely into kitchen or bathroom environments, minimizing attention to its use as a medication lock box. It can be used as a secure “medicine chest” when traveling. The product has now been released for distribution and further information is available on the company’s website pill-pod.com.
