New app launched to help patients manage their medication
Our trust member, South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust, launched a smartphone app which supports people with mental health conditions to manage their medication and keep a diary of their health and wellbeing.
The MindMeds app, developed by the Trust’s pharmacy department and technology company Healthinnova, has been designed to help patients and service users to log and keep track of their medication intake in just a few simple steps. With customisable reminders, MindMeds also helps people to remember to take their medication on time and according to their prescribed plan.
The Trust is one of the first NHS mental health trusts in the country to launch an app of this kind. The MindMeds app is free to download and available to all patients and service users who are prescribed medication as part of their care and recovery plans.
Seema Shah, Deputy Chief Pharmacist at South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust, said: “The MindMeds app has been designed to empower our patients and service users to have greater control over their medication and health records. We know that remembering to take your medication on time can be difficult, especially if you are managing multiple doses. Regularly missing medication can harm your health and make your medicine ineffective, so this app can help you to keep tabs on it.
“The app can also be used to record and share important health information, such as symptoms, side effects, mood, sleep, and other things that are affecting your mental health and wellbeing. This can help you to identify things to discuss with your doctor or healthcare professional as well as help you to better understand your condition and how to manage it.”
The MindMeds app has been designed and tested with help from some of the Trust’s patients and service users. In addition to tracking medication intake, the app allows users to log and monitor medical test results, set appointment reminders and complete health related questionnaires ahead of appointments.