As product technology advances and the general demand for healthcare expands, pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers are blurring industry lines as innovative products continue to emerge. In order to address healthcare needs, manufacturers are exploring new technologies that enable better patient compliance, utilize unique drug delivery methods, and improve package integrity and product safety.
- Device manufacturers have partnered with pharmaceutical companies to develop implantable devices that perform tests and dose medication automatically.
- Pill bottles can be equipped with digital timestamp read outs that remind patients to take their medication, and are able to be monitored remotely by a doctor to ensure dosages are taken correctly.
- Small adhesive patches are packed into capsules that when swallowed, dissolve and adhere to the intestinal wall to deliver time released medication.
- Transdermal patches embedded with an array of small needles are being tested to replace the traditional syringe injection method for vaccines.
Do these new breakthroughs in innovation belong to the pharmaceutical industry or the medical device industry? The simple answer is both.
As healthcare treatments become more complex, the pharmaceutical and medical device industries will continue to merge their technologies and expertise to deliver patient solutions that combine both pharmaceuticals and medical devices into one simple and convenient product.
Manufacturers will need to have integrated production and innovative products to differentiate themselves from the competition, and OEMs should be prepared to provide them with personal attention and custom solutions to address their individual challenges.
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Many of the leading suppliers of machinery and materials for pharma and medical device packaging and logistics teams will be exhibiting at Healthcare Packaging EXPO in Las Vegas, September 25-27, 2017.
Source: 2016 PMMI Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices – Trends & Opportunities in Packaging Operations.
