MedMinder

MedMinder homepage

Inspiration

Errors can occur throughout the entire medical process: from the initial diagnosis to the final treatment. Currently, one of the leading issues in medical errors, about 44%, are caused by tribulations in medication, specifically errors in the wrong drug, patient, or time. Being a team of 2 former pre-med students and one current biomedical engineering student, we are passionate about the intersection of technology and medicine. We were inspired to take on a challenge to prevent these medication errors, particularly by helping patients take their medications consistently with a reminder application.

What it does

MedMinder is a one-stop shop for all of a patients' medical needs. It provides users the chance to view their entire week's medicine routine visually. Depending on the user's input of each medicine's frequency and if the medicine is taken with a meal, the website sends push notifications directly to their phone in order to remind them to take the medicine. If the user is busy or has not had a meal yet, they can snooze their reminder for thirty minutes to allow them to remind them at a later time. The website also allows the user to check off the medications that they have taken in a day so that they do not accidentally forget and take the medication twice. To motivate users to keep taking their medications every day, the app keeps a streak count once all medications are checked off for the day. The app can also provide suggestions and information for each type of medication. For example, how often and when to take medicine, whether to take it with a meal, and substances that the medication might interact with negatively. Targeted towards older people, the app allows individuals to upload images of each medication so that they can refer to the picture in the future, differentiate the pill, and take the correct medication.

How we built it

We created a detailed prototype of our website using Figma. Then, we began to code the actual website with HTML and CSS in replit.it, using Firebase as a way to store data.

Challenges we ran into

One challenge we ran into was integrating and using firebase into our code. Due to this we could not figure out how to store login and sign in information, and thus would need more time. We also ran into the issue of finding an API with information about prescribed medications easily accessible online. Finding an API with all the drug information would make it easier to provide suggestions about its interactions with other medications and basic information.

What makes MedMinder Different:

When creating the design features of our application, our main priority was preventing medical error on all sides and allowing treatment to take full effect. This was achieved by: Including personalized suggestions for the user’s medication needs such as: How often/ Recommended time of day Pregnant/medical conditions Common medications/alcohol to avoid while taking Rewarding the user for the number of days they are able to stay on track, by including a total daily streak count. Picture visual uploaded by user of their medication to avoid confusion between similar meds

What we learned

We learned how to use Figma to build a prototype of our website. Additionally, we learned about HTML/CSS for the frontend development and how to initialize Firebase as a backend component to store data.
We also learned the gravity of medical error in the healthcare field, and how technology is crucial to providing innovative solutions to make healthcare as effective and safe as possible for those who need it. Overall, we learned the ins and outs of a hackathon and how to collaborate as a team to provide an end product that provides a solution to a real world problem.

What's next for MedMinder

In the future, our team intends on improving the usage of our firebase database and also work with API’s to deliver information, such as warnings or suggestions associated with the type of medication that the user inputs.