NEWS

 AFTER years in development and testing, patient medication tool TaperMate is now available for download on Google Play and the Apple App Store. Created by ACT pharmacist Alicia Martin (pictured) and software engineer Christian Townsend, the app is designed to help people to safely taper off medication, particularly drugs where slower tapers are needed.

Alicia has launched a petition to pressure drug companies to update their Consumer Medicines Information (CMI) and Product Information (PI) documents with current evidence of withdrawal. We are also asking them to remove any reference to depression being caused by a "chemical imbalance" and antidepressants working by "correcting" this imbalance. Please sign and share!

Alicia Martin is the 2024 Innovative Pharmacist of the Year award winner after developing a mobile app that aids deprescribing. Martin was given the award at a function at UTS in Sydney this week for her TaperMate mobile app that  helps people safely stop medications that cause withdrawal symptoms like antidepressants and benzodiazepines.

Alicia was honoured to be invited to the MHDU conference to present about judicious use and safe tapering of psychotropic medications (particularly in the context of potential erectile side effects of SSRIs) to a room full of enthusiastic health professionals including pharmacists, urologists, doctors, physios, nurses, sexologists and more! 

Alicia was invited as a guest speaker for the Benzo Warrior Community on the 30th of July 2024. She presented about the role of a pharmacist in supporting tapering and showcased the TaperMate app and how it can help. 

 While patients can easily obtain a prescription for antidepressants from their GP, stopping the medicines is not as simple. 

Australian Pharmacist delves into how antidepressants are prescribed and used, and new guidelines designed to overcome the difficulties of cessation. By TaperMate founder, Alicia Martin.

One in seven Australians is currently on SSRIs, commonly known as antidepressants like Lexapro. Discontinuation poses a challenge often underestimated by outdated guidelines.   Alicia Martin is a pharmacist from Canberra leading the creation of TaperMate, an app that will make this transition smoother. 

 Australia doesn't have official guidelines for deprescribing antidepressants, meaning it's easy for patients to get a prescription but hard to come off the medication.  

 Around one in seven Australians takes an antidepressant — the second-highest per capita usage in the OECD.  Research suggests half of those who try to come off their antidepressant experience side effects, which can range from mild to severe and last from days to months, or even longer. 

 Through the Innovation Connect program, matched grant funds of up to $30,000 has been awarded to nine Canberra innovators to make their ideas become a reality. All of the funded projects highlight the creativity and innovation of Canberrans looking for inspired solutions to everyday challenges. 

 "The joint ACT Early Career Pharmacists of the Year are Alicia Martin and Jacqueline Lockley.

Alicia Martin is a community pharmacist in Canberra’s south and is the founder of TaperMate, a mobile app to help patients safely taper their use of medications that cause withdrawal symptoms."

Alicia was recently interviewed by the Canberra Innovation Network for their Women in Innovation series. Read to find out why innovation is important to her, what drives her to make a difference, goals for the future and advice for aspiring female founders.  

TaperMate founder, Alicia Martin was invited to pitch at the Canberra Innovation Network's monthly event in September 2023. Alicia used the pitch to try to find a developer to join the TaperMate team. After sharing the pitch on social media, an old high school classmate reached out to see if she was still looking for a developer. The two connected and agreed to work together to bring TaperMate to life. We extend a warm welcome to software engineer, Christian Townsend. 

On the 28th of July 2023 TaperMate founder, Alicia Martin faced the sharks and a room full of pharmacists as a finalist for Pharmacy Shark Tank at the PSA23 conference in Sydney. It was an amazing opportunity to share the vision for TaperMate and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive. TaperMate was voted as the People's Choice for best pitch and was awarded $1000.  

YWCA Canberra announced the recipients of their 2023 Great Ydeas small grants at a breakfast on the 4th of May. TaperMate founder, Alicia Martin was one of the lucky recipients and received $2000 to grow her great Ydea! The money will go towards startup costs and a trip to the PSA23 conference in July to participate in the Pharmacy Shark Tank competition.