Saint Mary's College is making some new strides.
A research team has developed a tool that can screen for counterfeit pain relievers.
It's a technology that could ferret out fake drugs that promise cures for everything from malaria to the flu.
The College has applied for a U.S. patent for the paper analytical device or "PAD."
Researchers are also working to get a business plan together for the tool.
"We'd love to work with pharmacies, or government agencies. Catholic charities. We're trying to work with the Sisters here for example, with the Brothers here at Notre Dame to get this out to the pharmacists, first," says Saint Mary's chemistry professor, Toni Barstis.
To check for counterfeit ingredients, a person simply swipes the pill onto the PAD and dips the PAD in water.
It only takes five minutes.
