Application of computer vision to automatic prescription verification in pharmaceutical mail order

Ali T. Alouani

doi:10.1117/12.603417

25 May 2005 Application of computer vision to automatic prescription verification in pharmaceutical mail order

Ali T. Alouani

Proceedings Volume 5817, Visual Information Processing XIV; (2005) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.603417
Event: Defense and Security, 2005, Orlando, Florida, United States

Abstract

In large volume pharmaceutical mail order, before shipping out prescriptions, licensed pharmacists ensure that the drug in the bottle matches the information provided in the patient prescription. Typically, the pharmacist has about 2 sec to complete the prescription verification process of one prescription. Performing about 1800 prescription verification per hour is tedious and can generate human errors as a result of visual and brain fatigue. Available automatic drug verification systems are limited to a single pill at a time. This is not suitable for large volume pharmaceutical mail order, where a prescription can have as many as 60 pills and where thousands of prescriptions are filled every day. In an attempt to reduce human fatigue, cost, and limit human error, the automatic prescription verification system (APVS) was invented to meet the need of large scale pharmaceutical mail order. This paper deals with the design and implementation of the first prototype online automatic prescription verification machine to perform the same task currently done by a pharmacist. The emphasis here is on the visual aspects of the machine. The system has been successfully tested on 43,000 prescriptions.

Citation Download Citation

Ali T. Alouani "Application of computer vision to automatic prescription verification in pharmaceutical mail order", Proc. SPIE 5817, Visual Information Processing XIV, (25 May 2005); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.603417

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available