ePharm: A Mobile Pharmacy Application for Locating Nearby Pharmacies

Abstract

The use of mobile phones and the implementation of mobile applications and services have progressed dramatically in the present society as they have made the lives of people more efficient. Even then, if the prescribed medications are difficult to obtain or unavailable in some pharmacies, patients must visit many different pharmacies to obtain them. This is mainly because there is no proper network between the existing pharmacies. It is hectic task to visit numerous locations merely to find a certain medicine, especially in the current economic crisis in the country with the shortage of medicines and fuel. It would be more efficient and effective, in terms of time and energy, if there was an app that could discover nearby pharmacies where the recommended medications are accessible. A mobile pharmacy application is presented as a solution to the problems that individuals experience daily. The goal of this research is to find the major requirements for implementing the application and designing it by integrating those features. Following a thorough literature analysis, it was able to identify the drawbacks of the existing systems and determine the appropriate technologies for implementing the identified features. Through that Google Maps API and Google Directions API were recognized as adequate for geographical placing and tracking of pharmacies. These technologies would improve the accuracy of the system's ultimate output while also making it more usable for consumers. Further, these outcomes can be used for the future implementation purposes of the mobile pharmacy application.