Award Abstract #2014255

SBIR Phase I: Automated Medical Supply Dispenser to Decrease Spread of COVID-19 to Healthcare Professionals

NSF Directorate:
ENG - Directorate for Engineering
NSF Division:

Division of Industrial Innovation and Partnerships

Initial Amendment Date:

Latest Amendment Date:

Award Number:

2014255

Award Instrument:

Grant

Program Manager:

Alastair Monk

Start Date:

End Date:

Awarded Amount to Date:

$225,000.00

Investigator(s):

Cheryl Lohman [email protected] (Principal Investigator)

Sponsor:

MEDAPPTIC, LLC
18805 LAKE PLACID LN
GERMANTOWN MD 208746235

NSF Program:
SBIR Phase I
Program Reference Code(s):
096Z
8018
8033
Program Element Code(s):
5371
Abstract:

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to protect healthcare workers and conserve personal protective equipment (PPE) through automated medication delivery. The healthcare system is facing an unprecedented emergency during the COVID-19 crisis. The US has just 3.3 hospital beds available per 1,000 people, and healthcare workers have accounted for 10% of COVID-19 cases in Italy. This project will decrease the frequency of direct contact with patients through a medication dispenser integrated with the Electronic Health Record (EHR). In the near term, it will lower the chance of transmission of the novel coronavirus, saving limited PPE supplies, and potentially alleviating mounting pressure on the healthcare system. In the longer term, it can be used for other medical conditions; for instance, it can enable a patient to self-administer pain medication in a device that provides reporting for EHR and the physician, potentially addressing the national opioid epidemic.

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is for the design and development of a medical device managed by secure software and integrated with the Electronic Health Record (EHR) via FHIR (Fast Hospital Interoperability Resources), an emerging protocol and evolution of HL7 (Health Level 7) intended to radically simplify the data interface in the EHR system. The outcome of the project is to further the interface between the device and the hospital EHR through FHIR. The SBIR Phase 1 project is focused on defining challenges for this EHR-FHIR integration, including potential cybersecurity risks.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.