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Description
Galen plans to expand its business activities beyond operating in-store and online pharmacies by developing pharmaceutical care for senior customers. Under the project we will be launching Foni Pharm platform and an associated device, a smart speaker which will be tasked with reminding patients of medication taking times and doses, providing information about the medication they are taking and giving voice responses to inquiries about the contents of medication leaflets. The platform, operating with or without a speaker, will be a digital database interface to organise the pharmacy’s communication with the patient, with the use of a calendar and medicine lists. The system will allow direct communication between the patient and the pharmacist, and will include information about the patient’s medicine purchase history for better monitoring of therapy. It will apply artificial intelligence to engage the patient.
One of the Foni Pharm functionalities related to the patient’s safety will be the possibility of making voice-activated emergency calls through pre-programmed commands, such as “Help me!”, sent as a notification to persons indicated in the portal, e.g. family members, neighbours and emergency units.
We will purchase a number of consulting services aimed to prepare a business model and a system concept, and to develop and launch the system and platform. The innovative solution resulting from the project will be trademarked.
Summary of project results
The aim of Foni Pharm''s innovation was to activate the potential inherent in pharmaceutical care through the use of innovative solutions such as voice technology and digital tools, and to develop and introduce new business processes related to data collection and analytics, order prediction and supply chain management into the pharmacy network. By targeting an innovation product to a vulnerable group such as the elderly and/or sick, we wanted to use a voice technology interface to communicate with patients, thus overcoming mobility impairments, visual impairments, as well as digital exclusion. Foni Pharm''s innovation is expected to improve the health-related quality of life of elderly and sick people in areas such as safety, independence, care and social life. Patient safety is ensured by automated notification of the need to take medication at a specific time of day and in a dosage prescribed by the doctor. Failure of the patient to respond to the voice notification results in several attempts to repeat the contact until the patient interacts or the information about not taking the medication is recorded. An extension of the safety function is also the possibility - as part of a subscription - of pharmaceutical care providing medication-related entries on the Foni Pharm platform. Traditional pharmacy counselling depends on direct contact between patient and pharmacist in a physical location. An immanent feature of the pharmacy of the future is the virtualisation of the distance between patient and pharmacist mediated by technology, in this case Foni Pharm''s product innovation. Patient autonomy understood in this way allows patients to benefit from personalised advice at any time of the day or night, seven days a week, without having to physically visit a pharmacy. Quality of life can be improved through innovation that, by interfering with the existing architecture of the healthcare system, seeks the opportunity to bring about purposeful and sustainable change, which is particularly important for the elderly and sick. In a broader socio-economic context, Foni Pharn can be the first step towards building the pharmacy of the future. Such a pharmacy is not limited to a building, placed in a specific location. Thanks to the digital component, the pharmacy extends its operation in a virtual space. Foni Pharm''s innovation is also intended to address entrepreneurial goals of gaining a competitive advantage by building a learning organisation.
Management consultancy services were provided as part of the project - a business model and business plan for potential commercialisation were developed. Innovation process models were also developed. Key activities in the project include the production of the Foni Pharm platform and smart speaker, including: development of the functional concept and MVP of the Foni Pharm platform and smart speaker, design development - creation of interfaces for users of the Foni Pharm platform and smart speaker, preparation of the server environment necessary to host the platform prototype and communication integration in the project, development of the Foni Pharm platform - coding of functionality and interfaces, production of the Foni Pharm smart speaker prototype, development of communication scenarios using voice technologies, modelling of voice technologies used in the Foni Pharm platform (ASR, TTS, NLP), creation and training of voice algorithms based on databases, integration of voice technologies into the Foni Pharm platform and smart speaker, and working on complete technological documentation necessary to launch mass production of the smart speaker. Activities in the project also involved research and development, including UX studies of the platform prototype and smart speaker, iterations - creating successive versions of the platform prototype and smart speaker, testing voice technologies in pharmaceutical counselling implemented by the Foni Pharm platform, and alignment of innovative digital technologies - producing the final version of the platform prototype and smart speaker. Other activities in the project concerned patent proceedings and trademark protection, the development of bylaws and contracts, and the working of Foni Pharm portal regulations, privacy regulations, etc.
The project''s target group was the elderly and/or sick, who are among the most vulnerable in society. Improving their quality of life set the stage for an innovation that seeks the opportunity to bring about purposeful and sustainable change by extending traditional pharmaceutical care.
The main outcomes of the project are described below:
- A new product, enriching the Galen pharmacy chain''s offering and contributing to its revenue growth.
- Increased competitiveness through the development and implementation of innovations in the area of life-enhancing technologies, especially for seniors.
- An increase in knowledge, skills and entrepreneurial competence necessary to maintain
and development of the business.
- Building a learning organisation.
- Developing an organisational network and supporting innovation processes.
- Introduction of new business processes.