Abstract

A system for the packaging, shipment, storage, and reconstitution of dry pharmaceuticals includes a flexible bag manufactured from two layers of plastic laminated film and a rigid port-forming member. In the system, the package is used for shipment and storage of dry pharmaceuticals and for their reconstitution in a liquid solution and their intravenous administration. A plurality of such packages may be handled as an assembly by flexible plastic strips both during processing and packaging and during the reconstitution of the dry medicine as a liquid solution. The flexible plastic strips are formed with a plurality of cavities. Each cavity of the strip has a plurality of sites located in its central portion and adapted to engage and retain the port-forming member and to protect its opening from contamination. A plurality of such package assemblies can be enclosed within an outer protective bag to provide protection against moisture and the effects of the environment during shipment and storage. The assemblies may be removed from the outer protective bag by the batching strips and placed in a special rack for support. With a plurality of packages supported by the rack, a hospital pharmacist, using a power-operated pump, may fill each container with a controlled quantity of a liquid solute for the dry pharmaceutical. When the dry medicine is in solution, it may be intravenously administered directly from the package.