# Preventing Medication Mismanagement in People Living with Dementia through Automated Medication Dispensing with Facial Recognition and Video Observation

> **NIH NIH R43** · HIDO TECHNOLOGIES, INC. · 2022 · $449,609

## Abstract

Globally, over 47 million individuals are living with dementia, with new incidence of 7.7 million annually.
Medication mismanagement is one of the most common and concerning risk factors in people with dementia
(PwD), as it leads to undertreatment of disease, emergency department visits, hospital admissions/readmissions,
and serious adverse events. In the U.S. an estimated 3 million older adults are admitted to nursing homes due
to drug-related adherence problems with annual cost exceeding $14 billion. The challenge is complex medication
management requires moderate executive functioning. However, as cognitive function declines, PwD can no
longer perform such Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs) safely, effectively, and independently. While
the goal is to keep older adults at home as long as possible, caregivers are not available 24/7 & costs of external
care are often prohibitive.
 The HiDO platform will solve these market challenges by automating medication administration for PwD to
eliminate mismanagement, decrease caregiver burden, reduce healthcare utilization and facilitate the ability for
PwD to age in place. While still premarket, HiDO is being designed and validated as an automated, AI driven
medication dispensing and direct observation platform to optimize adherence. The innovative device integrates
medication dispensing, dose administration time, medication synchronization, and a pair of front-facing video
cameras to validate the right medications, the right route, right time, right dosage to the right patient (5R’s). The
cameras record every dose using facial recognition & provide real-time medication consumption recordings for
medical review if needed by monitoring the time a patient interacts with the device. Through cloud connectivity,
providers & caregivers have access to video observation logs, dose administration time, adherence trends, &
longitudinal adherence through the platform’s dashboard. Patients & caregivers can easily setup complex
medication protocols in minutes using a smartphone app. The device then alerts patients and dispenses up to 7
different types of meds simultaneously, with up to 40 doses each.
 The fully commercialized HiDO platform will integrate the full feature suite above. However, to demonstrate
feasibility, Phase I will target an in-clinic usability study, platform enhancements & novel AI to confirm ingestion,
and remote pilot study to document independent usability & adherence in PwD. An existing prototype HiDO
platform, which already integrates facial recognition AI, will be leveraged as a base technology to increase
likelihood of project success. First, using the existing prototype we will complete an in-clinic usability study to
validate use cases and product features in the target population. The existing platform will then be enhanced
with machine vision AI to confirm medication ingestion, as well as updates to address challenges found in early
usability. Once the enhanced platform has ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10461514
- **Project number:** 1R43AG077737-01
- **Recipient organization:** HIDO TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Charles Gellman
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $449,609
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-08-15 → 2024-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10461514

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10461514, Preventing Medication Mismanagement in People Living with Dementia through Automated Medication Dispensing with Facial Recognition and Video Observation (1R43AG077737-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10461514. Licensed CC0.

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