VML Health recognized this urgent challenge, especially for older patients managing complex treatments. Our groundbreaking solution "The Safe Pack" reimagines pharmaceutical design, transforming a potential hazard into a beacon of clarity and safety. Read on to discover how VML Health leveraged gerontological design to protect public health and empower patients.
The Safe Pack
VML Health’s gerontological design solution "The Safe Pack" revolutionizes pharmaceutical packaging, making medication safer for older patients.
Cliente
- TuPharma 365
Oficina
- Madrid
- New York
Every year, thousands of lives are at risk due to medication errors caused by confusing packaging.
The aim is to ensure that something as critical as taking the right medication doesn’t depend on reading tiny text or remembering complex names. With 'The Safe Pack', patients can quickly identify which medicine they’re taking, helping to prevent potentially life-threatening mistakes.
Natxo Díaz
Global Head of Craft, VML Health
Medication errors are a silent epidemic, claiming approximately 8,000 lives annually in Spain. A significant contributor to this crisis is 'look-alike packaging,' where medicines appear dangerously similar, leading to confusion and tragic mistakes. This challenge is amplified for older patients, who often juggle multiple prescriptions and face difficulties distinguishing between virtually identical boxes. VML Health was driven to confront this critical issue, fighting for a world where design prioritizes patient safety over aesthetics, ensuring no one is put at risk by confusing pharmaceutical packaging.
Our journey began with a deep dive into Spain's most commonly prescribed medications. This extensive analysis unveiled a critical insight: an alarming uniformity in packaging dimensions, colors, and graphic styles across various drugs, directly contributing to medication errors. This discovery sparked a powerful directive: to apply the principles of gerontological design. By adapting our approach to the cognitive and visual needs of older adults, we found the key to transforming packaging from a source of confusion into a clear, inclusive safeguard for those often overlooked.
Introducing "The Safe Pack" – a revolutionary, gerontological design-based system that redefines pharmaceutical packaging safety. Our ingenious solution involves adaptable sleeves that fit around medicine boxes, making identification instant and unmistakable. What makes it brilliant? A simplified graphic design system featuring high-contrast colors, ultra-legible typography, intuitive iconography, adaptable sizes, and matte finishes. This transforms packaging from a potential hazard into a protective shield, proving that when it comes to health, functionality is the ultimate aesthetic.
The Safe Pack is already making a tangible difference, rolling out across 20 pharmacies in major Spanish cities through the TuPharma365 network. Pharmacists are actively providing these life-saving sleeves with prescribed medication, directly empowering patients. Soon these innovative designs will be available as free downloadable templates on TuPharma365’s website, ensuring that accessibility reaches even the most vulnerable. This initiative isn't just about packaging; it's about fostering improved treatment adherence, significantly reducing medication errors, and fundamentally strengthening public health by demonstrating design's profound capacity for positive change.
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Premios
2026 Clio Health
Creative Strategy - Creative Strategy
Gold
2026 Clio Health
Print & Out of Home Craft — Art Direction
Gold
2026 Clio Health
Design — Packaging
Gold
2026 Clio Health
Design — Human Centered Design
Gold
2026 Clio Health
Design — Direct
Silver
2026 Clio Health
Innovation — Medium Innovation
Silver
2026 Clio Health
Direct — Print
Bronze
2026 Clio Health
Design Craft — Production Design
Bronze
Press
VML Health crea “The Safe Pack”, un sistema de diseño que facilita identificar medicamentos
Reason Why
VML Health desarrolla un sistema para reducir errores de medicación en pacientes mayoresIpmark
Llega un sistema pionero que evita confundir medicamentosEl Periódico de la Publicidad
The Safe Pack, un sistema pionero que evita confundir medicamentosPMFarma
Proyectos afines
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