Feasibility, acceptability and usability of a thermolabile drugs storage monitoring system at patient’s home: a pilot study

This pilot study evaluates the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of an innovative sensor driven monitoring system designed to ensure the proper conservation of thermolabile medications stored in patients’ homes. The system enables continuous temperature monitoring from the time of dispensing at the hospital pharmacy through domestic storage and incorporates a three tier, color coded alert mechanism (OK–Alert–Risk) to prompt timely corrective actions and prevent improper storage. Twenty-three patients receiving thermolabile medications participated over a several week period. The system demonstrated high usability, with a mean System Usability Scale (SUS) score of 82.5, indicating excellent user acceptance. Feasibility was supported by an average continuous sensor operation time of 17.5 days and a maximum deployment duration of 112 days. Patient acceptability was considered good, as reflected by a Net Promoter Score of 17.5. Thirteen alert events were detected during the study; two were successfully resolved through patient intervention, while seven progressed to Risk status, indicating improper storage. Overall, the findings support the system’s potential to enhance medication safety, promote patient engagement, and provide actionable real time data for pharmacy teams, informing future large scale clinical implementation.