Background
Medication errors are one of the most spread types of medical errors that remains a significant healthcare problem. According to WHO, medication errors kill one American every day and harm approximately 1.3 million people a year in the United States. Moreover, this problem is determined by a large number of different factors and is multifaceted. In addition to treating physicians, it concerns nurses, laboratory technicians, doctors of diagnostic departments, administrators of medical institutions, pharmacists, drug manufacturers, as well as the patients themselves or their guardians. Therefore, it undermines patients’ faith in the health care system and burdens treatment.
This problem has generated strong academic and professional interest since medication errors can occur at any stage of interaction with a patient. This fact prompted my interest in studying this topic to clarify ways to minimize and reduce the spread of the number of medication errors. Moreover, this problem had already arisen in my professional experience, when, during the management of the patient, the necessary parameters were not monitored after the start of treatment. Thus, these factors actualized my interest in the medication errors problem.
Source Evidence of Credibility for Peer Reviewed Journal Article Sources
To study the topic of medication errors, I searched for scientific or academic peer-reviewed literature in PubMed. The criteria used to search for sources contain publication date and keywords, including medication administration, medication errors, medication safety. As a result of the search, I have selected four primary sources, which, in my opinion, most comprehensively and accurately reflect the topic of medication errors. In turn, the criteria for selecting sources were such aspects as expert judgment, the purpose of the source, and the credibility of the authors.
Annotated Bibliography Summaries of Medication Errors Research
Araujo, B. C., de Melo, R. C., de Bortoli, M. C., Bonfim, J. R., & Toma, T. S. (2019). How to prevent or reduce prescribing errors: An evidence brief for policy. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 10, 439.
This research article discusses approaches that can prevent or reduce the number of medication errors in healthcare settings. Its emphasis is on using multidisciplinary approaches that involve pharmacists in teams, computerized prescribing alert systems, educational activities and initiatives to equip health care providers with prescribing knowledge, and implementing policies related to good prescribing practices. The article also highlights the importance of using screening tools for vulnerable patients, such as the elderly, to determine the safety of their prescriptions and the ability to take care of themselves. Therefore, this article will provide the audience with the obvious methods that have been used to prevent medication errors.
Cohen, M. (2016). Medication errors (miscellaneous). Nursing, 46 (2), 72.
This article was included in my research because it details the sources and subjects of medication errors. The purpose of this article is to discuss the most common but ignored sources of medication errors and how to fix them. Areas covered include the role of seals, labels, and packaging in medication errors. The author argues that healthcare professionals must verify the integrity of the seal before dispensing the medication. Another common source of medication errors is the pharmacist’s label, which hides a barcode, making it difficult to read and validate information during medication processing. Moreover, the article establishes that errors in treatment are multifactorial. While the medication provider is responsible for ensuring the correct medication, dosage, frequency, and channel, allied healthcare providers also play an essential role in reducing medication errors.
Schmidt, K., Taylor, A., & Pearson, A. (2017). Reduction of medication errors: a unique approach. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 32 (2), 150-156.
This study aimed to identify the basic steps required to reduce the number of medication errors. Socio-Technical Probabilistic Risk Assessment was used to analyze five-year reports of medication errors. As a result, the five most important steps have been identified that should be followed with each intravenous injection of a drug or fluid to avoid medication errors. These steps include verifying steps in the EHR, double-checking, scanning a barcode, reducing clamped lines, and simplifying the medication administrations for consistency and adherence. Preliminary analysis showed a 22% reduction in errors using these five steps. Thus, relatively few studies have focused on intravenous drug errors and how to prevent them. This resource helps fill the gap and explains why and how intravenous drug errors occur and the role of medication error.
Yousef, N., & Yousef, F. (2017). Using total quality management approach to improve patient safety by preventing medication error incidences. BMC Health Services Research, 17.
In this research article, Yousef & Yousef (2017) present the results of health professional education and more apparent handwritten prescriptions as most medication errors come from the drug administration process. To improve this and establish its effect, Yousef & Yousef (2017) conducted a study in a public hospital. It showed that changing the behavior of professionals, especially concerning handwriting, dramatically reduces the number of medication errors, especially those that occur due to mistakes in medication due to poor writing. This study will help prove the impact of medication administration on common medication errors in healthcare settings and the importance of health professional education and more explicit handwritten prescriptions when it comes to medication administration to help reduce common medication errors.
Summary of Peer Reviewed Research on Medication Errors
Thus, medication errors, which are a source of serious harm to the patient, represent a significant obstacle to the development of healthcare. It was found that medication errors differ in the degree of damage to the patient. One of the most notable points that research has found is that medication errors are complex and multifactorial. There are human errors, systemic aspects such as active error reporting channels, and individual personality. Then there is the role of related professions and professionals such as pharmacists in making these mistakes. An equally important aspect is the reduction in the number of medication errors.