Drug Icon CC 藥物圖標

What Drug Icon CC 藥物圖標 does

Drug Icon CC 藥物圖標 is a Hong Kong-based social innovation initiative that designs and distributes pictogram-based medication instruction icons to improve drug label comprehension among elderly patients and ethnic minority communities. Founded in 2019, the company developed a core library of 30 drug icons organized into six functional categories — Dosing Schedule, Dosage, Drug Storage, Other Remarks, How to Use, and Route of Administration — and made them available under Creative Commons licensing (CC BY-ND for icons, CC BY for research and training materials) in Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, English, and Urdu. The technology is human-centered visual design rather than software; the icons have been validated through iterative user research with 397+ survey participants and 500+ feedback responses across age groups, ethnicities, and occupations. Drug Icon CC extends its core offering through complementary products: printable sticker sets for medication packaging, a WhatsApp sticker pack, multilingual educational leaflets, and integration with the partner-built PharmCare medication management app (supporting Nepali, Urdu, Indonesian, Hindi, and Vietnamese).

The business model is hybrid and impact-oriented rather than venture-scalable. Primary capital comes from the November 2020 SIE Fund Impact Incubator grant supporting a 12-month mature prototype program. Commercial revenue is diversified across multiple small streams: structured sponsorship tiers (US$50,000 Project Sponsor, US$10,000 Language Pack), unit-priced pill box donations and sales (US$4,000–US$6,000 per 1,000 units), and consultancy and implementation services delivered through a strategic partnership with PharmCare Technology Limited for healthcare service providers. The company serves three primary user segments — elderly patients, ethnic minority communities (Pakistani, Indian, Nepalese in Hong Kong), and caregivers — plus a secondary segment of healthcare professionals (registered pharmacists, community nurses). Distribution is community-led through 13+ partner organizations including HKCS, SKDCC, HKFWC, PharmConnect, CityU, and IVE, with an additional enterprise go-to-market channel via PharmCare for system integration. The team is small (~15 people, approximately 7 core) led by Project Lead Albert Au, with advisors including a HKU pharmacy lecturer, a CityU research fellow, and Hong Kong's first Pakistani-registered pharmacist, supplemented by pharmacy, nursing, and nutrition student interns from HKU, HKBU, and CityU.

Name

Drug Icon CC 藥物圖標

Legal name

Drug Icon CC

Website

https://drugicon.cc

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Drug Icon CC is a Hong Kong social innovation initiative that develops and distributes Creative Commons-licensed pictogram-based medication instruction icons in multiple languages to improve drug label comprehension for elderly patients and ethnic minority communities, with go-to-market through community organizations and PharmCare.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Medication Safety Education

NAICS

Graphic Design Services (541430)

akta.pro primary industry

Medication Adherence, Reminders & Patient Support (HLACAKAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pharmaceutical Labels & Patient Information Packaging (Labels, IFUs, Booklets) (IMALAIAK), Medication Adherence & Therapy Management Platforms (refills, reminders, MTM) (HLALAIAG)

Keywords

• Medication pictogram design
• Multilingual health education
• Patient communication tools
• Medication adherence support
• Community health outreach

Headquarters

HQ city

Hong Kong

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: Primary revenue from social innovation grants. Received funding from Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Fund (SIE Fund) and incubated by Impact Incubator in November 2020 for a 12-month program.
2. Consultancy and Implementation Services: Partnership with PharmCare Technology Limited offering consultancy services and implementation services for healthcare service providers to implement Drug Icon CC in their organizations. Includes End Users Education/Promotion, Process Review, and System Integration.
3. Sponsorship and Donations: Sponsorship tiers including Project Sponsor (US$50,000), Language Pack sponsorship (US$10,000 per language), Pill Box donations, and recognition on homepage and donation page for supporters.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Drug Icon CC designs and distributes 30 universal pictogram-based medication instruction icons across 6 categories (Dosing Schedule, Dosage, Drug Storage, Other Remarks, How to Use, Route of Administration) in Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, English, and Urdu. The initiative provides free downloadable sticker sets, leaflets, and teaching materials under Creative Commons licensing, and offers consultancy services, educational workshops, and implementation support through a partnership with PharmCare Technology Limited for healthcare service providers.

Product overview

Drug Icon CC is a healthcare accessibility initiative offering a suite of visual medication instruction tools designed to improve patient comprehension of drug labels for elderly and ethnic minority populations in Hong Kong. The core product consists of 30 standardized drug icons across 6 categories covering dosing schedule, dosage, route of administration, how to use, drug storage, and other remarks. The product ecosystem includes printable sticker sets for attachment to medication packaging, WhatsApp digital sticker packs, educational leaflets, and the PharmCare medication management app (partner product). The program also offers Ethnic Minority Medication Education Workshops delivered by registered pharmacists from ethnic minority backgrounds, along with consultancy services for healthcare institutions. All materials are distributed under Creative Commons licensing (CC BY-ND for icons, CC BY for research and training materials) in Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, English, and Urdu, with the PharmCare app supporting additional languages including Nepali, Indonesian, Hindi, and Vietnamese.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Drug Icon CC Pictogram Set (V3.0) A set of 30 universal pictogram-based medication instruction icons covering 6 categories of drug label information, designed to improve comprehension for elderly patients and ethnic minorities in Hong Kong. Licensed under CC BY-ND for free use with attribution.
• Drug Icon Sticker Set Printable sticker sets featuring drug icons for attachment to medication packaging. Available in Traditional Chinese, English, and Urdu. Print specifications include New Star A Label No. 206 at 25mm x 25mm dimensions.
• WhatsApp Sticker Pack Digital sticker pack for WhatsApp messaging containing 20 drug icon graphics for communication about medication instructions among ethnic minority communities in Hong Kong.
• Drug Icon Leaflet
• PharmCare App Medication management mobile application providing support in Nepali, Urdu, Indonesian, Hindi, and Vietnamese languages for ethnic minorities to self-manage medication routines. Partnered product from PharmCare Technology Limited.
• Drug Icon Teaching Materials Set Comprehensive teaching materials including 1000 medication boxes with printed drug labels, promotional animations, and educational materials for distribution to elderly, caregivers, and ethnic minority users.
• EM Drug Education Workshop Educational workshops designed by registered pharmacists or nurses from ethnic minority backgrounds to enhance medication knowledge among ethnic minority patients. Includes training for pharmacists and student volunteers on cultural backgrounds and medication difficulties of ethnic minorities.
• Consultancy and Implementation Services Implementation and consultancy services for healthcare service providers to implement the Drug Icon CC initiative in their organizations, including End Users Education/Promotion, Process Review, and System Integration. Delivered through partnership with PharmCare Technology Limited.

Quantifiable outcome

• 397+ survey participants validated icon designs across different demographics
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• PharmCare Technology LimitedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership to offer both consultancy services and implementation services for Healthcare Services Providers to implement the Drug Icon CC initiative. Services include End Users Education/Promotion, Process Review, and System Integration. Contact: [email protected]
• Hong Kong Christian Service (HKCS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity collaborator for distributing drug icon materials to elderly and ethnic minority populations in Hong Kong.
• Sai Kung District Community Centre (SKDCC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity collaborator in Drug Icon CC program distribution and outreach activities.
• Hong Kong Family Welfare Centre (HKFWC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity collaborator for family and caregiver-focused medication education initiatives.
• Health In Ages (HIA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare-focused organization supporting medication education initiatives.
• City University of Hong Kong - Project HomAgemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner with Research Fellow Hera Leung contributing to the project. Research collaboration on medication education for elderly.
• Islamic Community CentermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVenue partner for ethnic minority medication education workshops led by Yasir Luqman.
• Institute of Vocational Education (IVE)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducational institution collaborator in Hong Kong vocational training context.
• PharmConnect (Pharmacists Connect)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional pharmacy network supporting medication education and professional collaboration.
• Creative Commons Hong Kong (CChk)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLicensing partner ensuring Creative Commons licensing compliance for Drug Icon materials.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• US Pharmacopeia (USP): Sets pharmaceutical standards including pictogram-based drug labeling guidance. Not a direct competitor but a relevant standard-setter that defines the bar Drug Icon CC's pictograms must meet for institutional credibility.

Emerging players

• AdhereTech: Smart pill bottle with sensors and reminders to improve adherence. Adjacent technology category to Drug Icon CC's visual/reminder approach, focused on hardware rather than pictograms.
• MedMinder: Smart medication dispenser and reminder system for elderly and chronic patients. Comparable end-user population to Drug Icon CC, with a hardware-plus-service model rather than visual icons.

Direct peers

• Mango Health: Mobile medication adherence and patient education app with reminders and rewards. Similar in mission to Drug Icon CC's pictogram-and-workshop approach to helping patients correctly take medications.
• Medisafe: Medication adherence platform offering a multilingual app with reminders, visual pill identification, and adherence tracking. Most directly comparable to Drug Icon CC's mission of improving patient comprehension and adherence through digital and visual tools.
• PharmCare Technology Limited: Hong Kong medication management app supporting Nepali, Urdu, Indonesian, Hindi, and Vietnamese — Drug Icon CC's named implementation partner. Operates in the same multilingual-adherence niche and shares the ethnic-minority patient base.

Broad incumbents

• Tabula Rasa HealthCare (now ExactCare): Medication management and adherence services for at-risk patients. Broader scope than Drug Icon CC, but competes for the same value-based medication safety and adherence narrative in healthcare systems.
• Wolters Kluwer Clinical Solutions: Supplies drug information, patient medication instructions, and labeling content to pharmacies and hospitals globally. Could trivially absorb a pictogram labeling feature, posing a competitive risk to Drug Icon CC.
• PillPack (Amazon Pharmacy): Pre-sorted multi-dose medication packaging with simplified labeling. Operates at much larger scale than Drug Icon CC but addresses the same elderly/multi-medication comprehension problem through a different delivery model.

Regional players

• Health In Action Foundation: Hong Kong-based community health NGO serving ethnic minorities and underserved populations. Listed as a Drug Icon CC collaborator, and operates a comparable regional health-equity mission in the same geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/drugicon.cc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/drugiconcc

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Drug Icon CC 藥物圖標