4 Sep 2016

DRL’s Purple Health Initiative: Packaging Innovation to improve patient compliance

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TagsDr. Reddy’s Laboratories, DRL, DRL's Purple Health Initiative

In an effort to improve patient compliance and provide them support services, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories has rolled out its Purple Health initiative across its 250 brands.

Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL) has redesigned its syrup bottles and blister packs to make them patient-friendly. At present, DRL is using the new design for five of its brands and will extend to 25 brands over next six months.

Traditionally, pharma packaging has been designed to meet technical and regulatory requirements and not so much to address patient convenience. Based on that insight, the company has redesigned its blister packs and syrup bottles it sells in India. It plans to extend the new packaging design to other emerging markets, including Russia. The exercise will increase its pharma packaging cost by about 20 per cent but there will be no increase in retail price. The change in packaging is part of company’s patient-centric initiative called Purple Health.

What to change in packaging?

As a part of new design, blisters have extra space on the top and bottom, making it easy for users to read the product name, retail price and expiry date, while syrup bottles have easy-to-hold cups for clear measure. Elderly patients taking medicines twice a day, for example, will have simple boxes to tick that will help better compliance. This initiatives is a great initiative by keeping aging population in mind.
Select products have been identified as Purple stars, and are being supported by patient support services. For instance, someone taking medicines for an advanced kidney condition would be supported by messages and counselling on diet, medicine and so on.