UGM students have developed a game application, Meet Pharmy, to introduce children to the profession of pharmacists.
“Through this application we try to introduce the children to the profession of pharmacists, sparking their interest and insight,” said Ris Heskiel Najogi Sitinjak, pharmacy student that developed the app during a press conference at UGM’s Public Relations office on Wednesday (15/5).
The app has been made along with fellow students, Shinta Diva Ekananda, Wahyunanda Crista Yuda, Muhammad Fikri Abdillah, Muhammad Sulhan Hadi, Luh Rai Maduretno Asvinigita, Lutfiana Pasebhan Jati, and Laksa Ersa Anugratama.
Najogi said the Meet Pharmy app had been developed since November 2018 for children aged between 2 – 14 years old.
“Children of that age are already familiar with smartphones, hence we make use of the gadget to trigger their interest and insight of the pharmacist profession,” he said.
The students tried to transfer health information to the children, especially regarding communication with pharmacists. The children will be invited to experience a consultation with a pharmacist named as Pharmy.
“Pharmy will give a prescription and explain how to have a healthy life,” he said.
Lutfiana added Meet Pharmy had some features covering three main basic diseases, namely, cough, cold, and fever which children often experience. There is also a module feature for parents containing information on diseases.
The students are still improving the app by adding the Indonesian language apart from English to the app, making more attractive appearance, image scenes, shorter instructions, and others.
“Meet Pharmy can already be downloaded on Google Play Store and currently it has been downloaded by over 1,000 users,” she said.
Apart from giving educational game to the children, this app has led the students to earn silver medals in the World Young Inventor Exhibition during International Invention, Innovation & Technology Exhibition (ITEX) 2019 in Malaysia, held from 2-4 May 2019. Previously, the app earned a gold medal in the Medicine and Public Health category during the Thailand Inventors’ Day 2019 from 2-6 February in Bangkok