A sheltered home company in the Northwest has teamed up with National Chemist Online (Natcol) to develop the use of an electronic pill dispenser. This dispenser reminds patients if they have not taken their medicines by sounding an alarm. Prescriptions are collected and made up by Natcol and delivered to patients who sign for them. If medication is not taken an allocated responder will investigate. Founder of Natcol Riaz Vali said the innovation removed the need for a dispenser to visit a resident several times a day. "We understood this idea right away," Mr Vali said. "It is an idea very much of its time due to the changes in the future delivery of NHS support services and of course financial constraints," Mr Vali added. However, University of London School of Pharmacy professor David Taylor said medicines adherence was a complex issue and there was little evidence that "container-type" dosage systems worked for older patients if they had more serious problems. "Some systems are more appropriate than others for different people. What we know about the use of these container-type systems is they don't make a huge amount of difference, as it often isn't just a case of being forgetful," he said. A text messaging system was launched last year by Cegedim Rx, and was found to significantly improve patient compliance. Contour Homes and Natcol have so far only promoted the services to sheltered accommodation residents in the Bolton and Rochdale areas but said they would be looking to expand the scheme further.