How Pivotell dispensers have helped people take their medication at the right time, stay in their own homes, and given families and care teams one less thing to worry about.
Julie's story More storiesBridgend, Wales, 2025. From a patient story published by Life Sciences Hub Wales.
Julie, 67, lives on her own and wants to stay in her own home. As her memory got worse, her three sisters were visiting up to three times a day to make sure she took the right tablets at the right time. Disagreements about whether she'd taken them were causing stress for everyone.
Julie now has a Pivotell with a tipper. When the alarm sounds, she tips the dispenser and her tablets fall into a bowl. Her sisters still visit every day, but now just check the bowl is empty. The worry and arguments about medication have gone.
Julie used a Pivotell as part of the Bridgend digital medicines dispensers project, funded by the SBRI Centre of Excellence and Welsh Government. See the project evaluation.
Norfolk Medicines Support Service, 2014 to 2016
Mr A, from Norwich, was coping with some informal support, and a care package of two visits a day was being considered to help with his medication. After an assessment by Norfolk Medicines Support Service he was given a Pivotell, filled by his community pharmacy. Once he was taking his medication as prescribed, the care package was no longer needed.
Source: Norfolk Medicines Support Service good practice case study, 2016.
From the West Midlands automated pill dispenser project, 2010 to 2012, unless stated.
Mr C, 60, has a learning disability and lived in a care home for many years, where staff gave him his medication. When he moved into supported living he was given a Pivotell and a tipper, and now manages his own medication. He became an ambassador for independent living, encouraging others to try technology.
Mrs W couldn't tell the sections of her pill box apart, so she sometimes took tablets on the wrong day. With an alarm and only one dose showing at a time, she went nearly two years without missing a dose.
Mrs H's son, who works full time, was calling and popping in to check on her medication. Within a couple of weeks the alarm had become part of her routine. Her son was delighted, and she enjoyed being more independent.
Mrs J no longer has to remind her husband about his tablets. "Brilliant, a godsend… I don't know how we managed without it before."
Both had problems remembering their medication, and their family arranged carers to remind them, which the couple didn't want. They now each have their own dispenser, with different alarms in different rooms, and no longer rely on carers to prompt them.
Mrs M was missing doses even when carers called to remind her. Her pharmacist suggested a Pivotell. She now takes medication several times a day and hadn't missed a dose in over two years.
John, 25, had just moved into his own home and was struggling to keep track of his medication. Within a week of using a Pivotell he was taking it regularly. Nurse visits dropped to planned check-ins, and he now welcomes visitors at a local leisure centre.
Mrs R's husband works away, and she relied on her children to remind her about her tablets. Within a couple of weeks of using a Pivotell she was taking them much more reliably, giving her more confidence and her husband peace of mind.
John, 84, is a widower who was forgetting to take his daily medication, and his daughter Jacqueline was worried. He was given a Pivotell as part of the West Midlands project, and they told their story on film.
Watch their storyCase studies of children and young adults using Pivotell dispensers.
Read the bookletNames and details are as published in the original case studies. Individual experiences vary. Pivotell dispensers remind people when medication is due and present only the right dose.
© Copyright 2016.
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