DISPENSING AND PHARMA: SAFETY, SECURITY AND SUSTAINABILITY The R&D efforts of Europe’s pharma packaging companies when it comes to drug dispensing systems are focused on several ‘pain points’, among them an aging population, child safety considerations, increasing compliance, product security and sustainability. Victoria Hattersley talks to some industry representatives to find out more about the unique challenges involved in dispensing medications and the different ways their organizations are approaching these. The question of safety The safety of the consumer is of course an important consideration for any area of packaging manufacture, but when it comes to pharmaceutical products, it’s critical. Not only do the drugs themselves have to reach the patient uncontaminated, but there are also aspects such as child safety to bear in mind when dealing with potentially lethal substances. There are many examples of innovation in child-resistant dispensing systems to choose from. Each year at major pharma packaging shows we can see the progress exhibitors are making in this area. At this year’s Pharmapack, Nemera’s Safe’n’Spray™ – a smart electronic delivery concept with child-resistant and locking features – was named the ‘Best Innovation in Drug Delivery Device’. The concept employs a reusable electronic locking unit, child-resistant features and fingerprint identification to monitor drugs delivered and prevent the patient from overdosing. “Safe’n’Spray offers a unique possibility to reuse the ‘SAFE’ electronic part once the ‘SPRAY’ part with the drug is over (eco-friendly on both economic and ecologic sides),” says Pascale Farjas, global category manager for ENT, Nemera. “The fingerprint sensor for patient unique identification acts as an easy and intuitive child-resistant feature, without the need for adding any secondary packaging with a child resistant function. Last but not least, Safe’n’Spray is a connected device, linked with e-Nemera CS, Nemera’s cloud platform. It offers access to patients, healthcare professionals and pharma companies for various services: treatment management, statistical analysis, etc.” Innovation in sterile containment systems that are easy to dispense is also ongoing. To give one example, Jason Stephens, director, Containment Systems R&D at West Pharmaceutical Services, tells us about some of the product launches from his company at Pharmapack. “A new seal called the
Flip-Off® CCS Seal is a ready-to-use, sterile, high-quality capping product for a 5mL Daikyo Crystal Zenith vial. Flip-Off® CCS Seals are manufactured using our TruEdge™ technology and are 100% vision inspected to provide a high-quality seal to maintain container closure integrity and supports a safe, convenient user experience. “International regulatory guidelines have significantly influenced clean crimping processes for drug manufacturers now requiring vial-capping in clean rooms or sterile suites. Use of unsuitable seals can have an impact on clean crimping procedures and create risks for patients. The Flip-Off® CCS Seal is the ideal solution for aseptic crimping as it is manufactured in an ISO 8 clean environment, offering excellent particulate control, limiting risk of contaminates and offering a certification for bioburden.”
Reducing risk for healthcare workers But it’s not just the safety of the patients that has to be considered – there are also risks for healthcare workers and packaging plays its part here, too. According to World Health Organization estimates, each year healthcare workers incur two million accidental needlestick injuries that could result in serious infections
“Packagers must continuously find happy mediums between making packages unopenable for small children but easy to open for older patients who may have dexterity and muscle strength issues.” Packaging Europe | 11 |
