WEBVTT

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I was at the chemist today for some Panadol.

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They were out, so the pharmacist gave me something else.

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Said it's got the same active substance.

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I get home, look at the box.

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Completely different name.

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And I'm standing there like a lemon.

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How am I meant to know if it really is the same?

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That's one of the most common questions in a home medicine cabinet.

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And here, as it happens, the app doesn't have to pretend to be a doctor to help you.

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Meaning?

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You open the medicine in the Moya Patechka app, and, under the brand name, you've got the active substance.

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Panadol's active substance is paracetamol.

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You take that second box, you look at its active substance,

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and if that says paracetamol too, then you know this much.

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The active substance is the same.

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That's still not a decision to swap them, or about how to take it.

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If you're in any doubt at all, you ask the pharmacist, or your GP.

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So the app tells me what this medicine actually is,

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not just what it's called in the adverts.

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Exactly.

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The brand name changes, but the active substance tells you what's actually inside.

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And that's the first step to a medicine in plain terms, knowing what the thing even is.

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All right, but sometimes I want to know more.

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What it's for?

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How to store it?

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Whether there are any contraindications?

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Usually I end up googling it and landing on some random forum.

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And that's the second thing.

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The app shows you extracts from the summary of product characteristics,

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that official document, right there in the app.

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Sections like indications, storage, contraindications, side effects.

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Where does it get that from?

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Because it sounds like the sort of thing someone could have made up off the top of their head.

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Not off the top of anyone's head.

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It's taken from the official product characteristics for that particular medicine,

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from an official medicines register.

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So you read the extracts right there in the app,

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and for the patient information leaflet and the full characteristics,

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you follow a link through to the official file.

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Hang on.

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So the app's telling me how to take it?

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No.

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And this is the most important distinction in the whole episode.

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What you're seeing is the official text,

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shown as an extract from the summary of product characteristics.

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Even the section on dosing is an extract from that document,

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not advice from the app.

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The app doesn't interpret it.

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It doesn't judge whether the medicine's right for you.

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On every one of those screens it says,

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in so many words,

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this is for information only.

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It's not medical advice.

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Consult your doctor or pharmacist.

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OK.

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So the app doesn't pretend to be a doctor.

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It shows you the official paperwork

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and tells you itself that it isn't advice.

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That's how it works.

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There's a difference between

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showing the official information

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and advising you.

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The app does the first.

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The decision about whether and how to take something

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isn't made in the app.

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You settle that with your GP or pharmacist,

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and you do as they say.

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That's honest, to be fair,

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because half the internet does the exact opposite.

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And one more thing I like.

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Those extracts from the characteristics

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you can translate on your phone.

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Polish, English, Ukrainian, Russian.

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The translation happens on the device itself.

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That one's genuinely useful.

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My mum sometimes finds Ukrainian easier to read,

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and the box is in another language.

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Precisely.

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It translates the extract you're reading,

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not the whole database at once.

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And what if I haven't got the box in my hand?

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I just want to check something quickly.

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There's a separate medication database.

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You type in a name, say Panadol,

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and you see the active substance,

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the strength, the form.

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The whole database,

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around 70,000 medicines from the register,

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works without a connection too,

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once you've synced the first time.

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You don't have to scan anything

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just to look something up.

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And where does all this data come from

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in the first place?

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Because if the app's telling me

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something about a medicine,

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I want to know it isn't somebody's guesswork.

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Quite right.

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The medicine data comes from

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an official medicines register,

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a public source.

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The full documents,

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the characteristics and the leaflet,

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come from an official register too.

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The app doesn't invent anything.

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It organises it and shows it in one place.

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So, a medicine in plain terms

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doesn't mean the app will explain to me

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what to do?

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No.

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A medicine in plain terms means

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you know what the substance is,

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you've got the official information to hand

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instead of a random forum,

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you can translate it,

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and for advice,

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you still go to a person.

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The app shortens the path

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to the official source.

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It doesn't replace the conversation

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with your GP or pharmacist.

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Right.

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I'll buy that.

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Literally and figuratively.

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And by the by,

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everything I'm talking about here

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is a real feature.

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I'm being specific

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so it's clear what the app does

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and what it doesn't.

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If you'd like to give it a go,

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that's the Moya Pteczka app.

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The app is free and works offline.

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You'll find the link

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in the episode description.

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And if you enjoyed the episode,

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share it with someone

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who looks at every new box

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and wonders,

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what actually is this?

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One more thing before we go.

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This podcast is made

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with the help

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of artificial intelligence.

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I wrote the dialogue myself,

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but the voices you're hearing

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aren't ours.

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They're AI-generated,

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synthetic voices.

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We're telling you this

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straight out

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because we think

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it should be the standard

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for any podcast

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made this way.

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Full details

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are in the show notes

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and in every episode description.

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And what's the next episode about?

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About how not to lose track

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when your medicines

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are in several places at once.

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At home,

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in the car,

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in a bag,

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at the allotment.

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Until next time.

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Until next time.

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you