When a patient picks up their prescription medication, the main form of communication comes from the pharmaceutical label. Everything from the name of the drug, the potential side effects, and instructions on how to take the medication will be read by users, being their go-to information source when they need to understand more.
To keep patients safe and minimize the risk of misuse or accidents, the information portrayed on the labels must be 100% accurate and easy to interpret. Although the main aim is to keep patients well informed, they are legally required to include a level of information that prevents mistakes. They offer instructions, details, and warnings to prevent misuse and mistakes, providing extensive usage details that can be followed by all patients.
One way of keeping the information on pharmaceutical labels condensed whilst still informative is symbols. In the industry there is a range of universal symbols which are standardized across all suppliers and could convey important information at just a glance, being easily visible and a great form of visual communication. Whether the symbol indicates that the medication can’t be taken before driving, is not suitable for children under a certain age, or cannot be taken alongside alcohol, a symbol is a more effective way to get a message across and takes up less space. This method utilizes bright colors and well-known symbols, ensuring the key details are not missed and do not face the issue of language barriers, often being red in color which is instantly recognizable as a warning. As well as for patients, this information is important to medical professionals and may minimize mistakes as they will be seen when passing a product to a patient.
Another important way of communicating information on pharmaceutical labels is barcodes. Although not relevant to the patient themselves, they are a necessity for medical professionals and can hold key details which are available once the code is scanned. The barcode allows the product to be tracked at every step of the process, from dispatch all the way to purchase in a pharmacy, containing the key data that will be stored in a wider system and used for analysis. The barcode system also helps protect patient privacy, keeping certain delicate information hidden from the public eye by concealing it behind a barcode that is only accessible to those with authorized scanners.
To speed up processing and provide essential information to dispensaries, a color-coding system is another method used within the industry. Referring to drug classes, there is a system that assigns a different color to different products so medical professionals can keep track of their drugs and quickly understand the necessary information associated before they hand a prescription to a patient. This code means labels are easily identifiable to those who understand the class system and can be grouped without having to take up important space on a label.
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