Medical offices make me uncomfortable. Even though they are places to find help, there’s something about the super sterile environment that gives me the creeps. I can’t deny that the rise of medication prescription and dosage errors over the past few years have contributed to my opinion of the medical and pharmaceutical industries. Read on and decide for yourself whether embracing blister packaging for prescriptions over bottles is a beneficial move for both industries and consumers.

Americans aren’t used to seeing many blister packed prescriptions. Since most of our medicine has always been packaged in bottles, that’s what consumers react to. Switching prescriptions to blister packaging from bottles would be a large undertaking for both retailers and consumers.

Over the years, specific bottle styles have become correlated with certain types of medication. For instance, often times, cough syrups are packaged in modern round bottles. Vitamins and other health supplements are easily to identify in packer bottles as well. This system of recognition through bottles has worked well for us, but hasn’t really developed in other countries.

80% of all pharmaceuticals in this country are packaged in bottles, leaving only 20% to represent blister packaging growth. The details in other countries are staggeringly different. Nearly 80% of the rest of the world’s packaging is represented through blister packs and bottles only account for 20%.

The numbers tell the story. Countries all over the world are using blister packs, a lot. And we’re still using bottles. Consumers, retailers and health care companies are finally considering the advantages of packaging prescriptions in blister packs over bottles. But many considerations need to be made before any decisions are made.

Consistently taking prescriptions is a proven medical industry issue that is in desperate need of solving. And believe it or not, blister packs may hold the key to making it happen. Unlike bottles, blister pack prescriptions are often packaged based on calendar days. This way of packaging has proven to ensure more adherence to prescription regimens. Are blister packs a breakthrough in treating medical conditions? They just might be.

Are blisters a new safety feature? People, both young and old, sort through a dozen plus prescriptions every day. Every now and again a pill for evenings makes its way into the daytime doses, and duplications are often spotted here and there. Luckily, most of these errors are noticed before tragedy strikes, but that’s not always the case. Believe it or not, sometimes even medical professionals forget whether they’ve distributed the proper prescriptions to the appropriate recipients. Imagine the convenience and safety associated with personal blisters packs, prepackaged by the pharmacy and filled with the appropriate medications for any specific individual’s needs (the same way they toss the pills into bottles, except in this case they organize all of the patient’s prescriptions in daily blisters).

Chances are, the debate over whether bottles or blister packs are more suitable to package prescriptions will continue for a while before any actions are made. Bottles are the traditional standard and have served our communities well, but obviously the rest of the world sees a little something in packaging in blister packs. Maybe one day the U.S. will be able to experience what it’s all about.

Bottles are the standard container for prescriptions. Read Kayla Holman’s blog about the role bottles and blister packaging play in the pharmaceutical industry.