I can understand the logic but this is a little to Big Brother for me.

FDA approves pill with sensor that digitally tracks if patients have ingested their medication

https://www.fda.gov/newsevents/newsroom/...584933.htm

(November 14, 2017 at 6:28 pm)mh.brewer Wrote: I can understand the logic but this is a little to Big Brother for me.

FDA approves pill with sensor that digitally tracks if patients have ingested their medication

https://www.fda.gov/newsevents/newsroom/...584933.htm

With you on the concerns, Brewer. We have had several cases over here of mental illness sufferers not taking their antipsychotics, either because of unpleasant side effects or their illness mitigating against developing a regular habit. This has sometimes involved injury or death to innocent people. So, yes, something that monitors the situation is good at first sight. If it prevents incarcerstion in a mental hodpital that is also good.

But as the public gets used to one thing . . .

I am not against some kinds of remote monitoring, I have an Implanted Cardiac Defibrillator, ICD. This little marvel has saved my life st least twice but, living alone, once I came round (as an untidy heap on the floor) I had to call the event in. They promise that future models will have GPS and a cellphone built in. So, providing there is at least one network signal available, it will report in with the location of the untidy heap. That is, for me, a very acceptable idea.

So, how long will it be before being permitted back into society involves having the whole device implanted? They will have to manage energy handling a bit better though - the battery in my ICD has a 6 -7 year life under normal circumstsnces. Rather beats the average cellphone! I have to say that the battery in my first ICD was faulty and went flat in 3 years. A built in vibrator tells you when it is down by 90%, then again at 95%. Mine went from 90 to 95 % flat in 24 hours, crash dive mode, and was no longer functioning by the time they started the cut to remove it! Bit scary... well, not really, they had me wired to an automatic external defibrillator by then and I was chatting with the surgeon as he worked.

I would think this is a major HIPAA violation.

reporting to prescribing physician is one thing, auto-posting skipped dose on facebook is another.

So, let me see if I follow this.

The pill reports that it hasn't been ingested and alerts the doctor.

Does the doctor call the patient, who is a schizophrenic and presumably knows or doesn't care that they haven't taken the pill, or,

does the doctor call the patient's family, thereby violating privilege and putting the family in the position of having to call the cops and risking this:

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/ppmvw...happy-1020

Quote:Manney was conducting a welfare check on Hamilton, who had recently gone off his medication and was sleeping the park (though he was not, in fact, homeless). Flynn said that Manney’s antagonizing pat down, which was done from behind—which might alarm a paranoid and mentally ill man—was performed “for no reason” and set off the incident. Other officers had checked in on Hamilton earlier, and since he was obviously not well, Manney should have called back-up or held off entirely.

I can't see much good coming of this.

If some one is needing this pill, maybe commitment is better.

Unfortunately these days that = prison.

(November 14, 2017 at 7:21 pm)Joods Wrote: I would think this is a major HIPAA violation.

I'm not sure how. The patient (or their legal guardian?) would have to agree.

Shit, the wife's gonna want one to make sure I swallow the food she gives me and not give it to the cat under the table!

No one listened to my recommendation regarding a small self destruct charge in the pills of annoying patients...

Having a chip in you? Creepy....
Also the government could abuse this technology in the future. I doubt they will, but they could.