June 22 (HealthDay News) -- A programmable device that allows professional caregivers to monitor how patients dispense their medications has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the agency said Thursday.

The Electronic Medication Management Assistant (EMMA) can reduce drug identification problems and dosing errors. It may prove especially useful for aging patients, those with memory problems, and for people with complex medication schedules, such as those with HIV, the FDA said.

Medication errors harm some 1.5 million people each year in the United States, the agency said, citing a 2006 estimate from the Institute of Medicine.

EMMA consists of a delivery and storage unit, and two-way communication software that allows a healthcare professional to remotely monitor how medications are dispensed. The unit sounds an audible alert when it's time to take a medication, dispensing the medication into a delivery tray when activated by the patient.

The EMMA system is produced by Altoona, Pa.-based INRange Systems.