UCLA Health Nurse Innovator Veronica Pellegrino Featured by American Nurses Association for Popsy
UCLA Health nurse innovator Veronica Pellegrino, BSN, RN, was featured by the American Nurses Association for her development of Popsy, a patented blister pill pack opening tool designed to improve the medication administration process for bedside nurses.
Pellegrino, a clinical nurse at UCLA Health and participant in UCLA Biodesign’s nurse innovation programming, developed Popsy after identifying the repetitive challenges nurses face when opening individually packaged medications. A hospital-wide survey conducted by Pellegrino received responses from more than 520 nurses and helped validate the need for a portable tool to support safer and more efficient medication preparation.
Popsy is designed as a compact, sanitizable tool that can be attached to a lanyard or keychain and used to open medication blister packs without relying on fingernails, pens, scissors, or other improvised methods. The innovation has received recognition through multiple UCLA pitch competitions and more than $40,000 in grant funding.
Pellegrino shares the inspiration behind Popsy, the clinical need that led to its development, and her experience advancing a nurse-driven innovation in a feature published by the American Nurses Association.