Medication errors are unintended failures in the medication process that lead to harmful consequences for the patient. According to a study conducted by researchers from the Universities of York, Manchester and Sheffield, more than 200 million medication errors occur in the NHS per year.
There are many ways in which medication errors can take place, including a patient being given medication of incorrect the strength, dosage, delivery method, rate, duration or timing. Patients can also be given medication that they are allergic to.
In this guide, we’ll discuss the common causes of medication errors, their consequences, and some measures that can help prevent them.
What are the common causes of medication errors?
Some of the most common causes of medication errors include:
- Incorrect diagnosis
- Prescribing errors
- Dose miscalculations
- Lack of medical reconciliation
- High patient volume
- Staffing shortages
- Overwhelmed medical professionals
- Poor communication between medical professionals
- Poor communication between clinicians and patients
What are the consequences of medication errors?
Medication errors are a major form of medical error that can lead to patients suffering from significant harm and even death. The cost to the victim is not just physical, but also psychological and financial, meaning there’s significant expenses needed for recovery. This is usually obtained if patients make a medical negligence compensation claim and successfully prove that a medication error took place because of a failure to uphold a duty of care.
How can medication errors be prevented?
Some tactics healthcare professionals can use to prevent medication errors include:
- Legible writing
When handwriting prescriptions, doctors should take care to write details clearly and legibly. Preferably, this should be done in capital letters and using the generic name of the drug. This helps prevent misinterpretation by the other people who will subsequently read the information. Special care is needed when prescribing look-alike, sound-alike drugs – medicines that have a similar looking or sounding name that can easily be confused with another.
- Patient education
Healthcare professionals need to teach patients how to use their medication properly. Patients should know the names of their medications, read the information sheets that come with them, learn about potential side effects and drug interactions, and know how to properly store their medications. This knowledge empowers the patient to protect themselves against medication errors.
- Transparent tracking
All medication error events should be recorded and reported, even near-misses. This allows for a clearer picture of how medication errors are occurring, which in turn allows trends to be identified and solutions to be implemented. Open discussion should be encouraged so that all professionals are aware of the issue and aren’t afraid to report medication errors, even their own.
Medication errors are a prevalent issue in healthcare, causing significant harm to patients. Although there are many causes that lead to medication errors, healthcare providers can reduce avoidable harm by implementing the sound prevention tactics such as those outlined above.
