Medication errors: the impact of prescribing and transcribing errors on preventable harm in hospitalised patients

What to learn from analysis of medical disputes related to medication errors in nursing care

BACKGROUND

Nurses, who are the last safeguard against and have the final opportunity to prevent medication errors (MEs), play a vital role in patient safety by managing medications.

OBJECTIVE

This study described the characteristics of medical dispute cases, medication information, and stage and types of MEs in Korea.

METHODS

We performed a descriptive analysis of 27 medical dispute cases related to MEs in nursing care in Korea.

RESULTS

Around 77.7% of patients suffered serious harm or died due to MEs in this study. The types of medications included anxiolytics and analgesics, and 51.9% of them were high-alert medications. Among cases of administration errors, failure to patient assessment before and after administration was the most common error followed by administering the wrong dose.

CONCLUSION

Nurses should perform their duties to ensure safety and improve the quality of nursing care by monitoring patients after administering medications and should be prepared to take quick action to reduce harm.

Medication-related adverse events in health care-what have we learned? A narrative overview of the current knowledge

Purpose

Although medication-related adverse events (MRAEs) in health care are vastly studied, high heterogeneity in study results complicates the interpretations of the current situation. The main objective of this study was to form an up-to-date overview of the current knowledge of the prevalence, risk factors, and surveillance of MRAEs in health care.

Methods

Electronic databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, Web of Science, and Scopus) were searched with applicable search terms to collect information on medication-related adverse events. In order to obtain an up-to-date view of MRAEs, only studies published after 2000 were accepted.

Results

The prevalence rates of different MRAEs vary greatly between individual studies and meta-analyses. Study setting, patient population, and detection methods play an important role in determining detection rates, which should be regarded while interpreting the results. Medication-related adverse events are more common in elderly patients and patients with lowered liver or kidney function, polypharmacy, and a large number of additional comorbidities. However, the risk of MRAEs is also significantly increased by the use of high-risk medicines but also in certain care situations. Preventing MRAEs is important as it will decrease patient mortality and morbidity but also reduce costs and functional challenges related to them.

Conclusions

Medication-related adverse events are highly common and have both immediate and long-term effects to patients and healthcare systems worldwide. Conclusive solutions for prevention of all medication-related harm are impossible to create. In the future, however, the development of efficient real-time detection methods can provide significant improvements for event prevention and forecasting.

Obstetrical safety indicators for preventing hospital harms in low risk births: a scoping review protocol

INTRODUCTION

Optimising the safety of obstetric patient care is a primary concern for many hospitals. Performance indicators measuring aspects of patient care processes can lead to improvements in health systems and the prevention of harm to the patient. We present our protocol for a scoping review to identify indicators for obstetric safety in low risk births. We aim to identify indicators addressing preventable hospital harms, to summarise the data and synthesise results.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

We will use methods described by Arksey and O'Malley and further expanded by Levac et al. We will search electronic databases such as Medline, Embase, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library, and websites from professional bodies and other organisations, using an iterative search strategy.Two reviewers will independently screen titles and abstracts of search results to determine eligibility for inclusion. If eligibility is not clear, the reviewers will screen the full text version. If reviewers' decisions regarding eligibility differ, a third reviewer will review the record. Two reviewers will independently extract data from records that meet our inclusion criteria using a standardised data collection form. We will narratively describe quantitative data, such as the frequency with which indicators are identified, and conduct a thematic analysis of the qualitative data. We will compile a comprehensive list of patient safety indicators and organise them according to concepts that best suit the data such as the Donabedian model or the Hospital Harm Framework. We will discuss the implications for future research, clinical practice and policy-making. We will report the conduct of the review using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for scoping reviews checklist.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

The sources of information included in this scoping review will be available to the public. Therefore, ethics approval is not warranted. We will disseminate results in a peer-reviewed publication, conference/event presentation(s) and stakeholder communications.

Standardising the Classification of Harm Associated with Medication Errors: The Harm Associated with Medication Error Classification (HAMEC)

Classifying harm associated with a medication error can be time consuming and labour intensive and limited studies undertake this step. There is no standardised process, and few studies that report harm assessment provide adequate methods to allow for study replication. Studies typically mention that a clinical review panel classified patient harm and provide a reference to a classification tool. Moreover, in many studies it is unclear whether potential or actual harm was classified as studies refer only to ‘error severity’. The tools used to categorise the severity of patient harm vary widely across studies and few have been assessed for inter-rater reliability and criterion validity. In this paper, we describe the systematic process we undertook to synthesise the defining elements and strengths, while mitigating the limitations, of existing harm classification tools to derive the Harm Associated with Medication Error Classification (HAMEC). This new tool provides a harm classification for use across clinical and research settings. The provision of an explicit process for its application and guiding category descriptors are designed to reduce the risk of misclassification and produce results that are comparable across studies. As the World Health Organisation embarks on its international safety challenge of reducing medication-related harm by 50%, accompanying methodological advances are required to measure progress.

Challenges in Measuring the Impact of Interruption on Patient Safety and Workflow Outcomes

Objective: To examine the problem of studying interruption in healthcare.

Methods: Review of the interruption literature from psychology, human-computer interaction; experimental studies of electronic prescribing and error behaviour; observational studies in emergency and intensive care.

Results: Primary task and interruption variables which contribute to the outcomes of an interruption include the type of task (primary and interrupting task); point of interruption; duration of interruption; similarity of interruptive task to primary task; modality of interruption; environmental cues; and interruption handling strategy. Effects of interruption on task performance can be examined by measuring errors, the time on task, interruption lag and resumption lag.

Conclusions: Interruptions are a complex phenomenon where multiple variables including the characteristics of primary tasks, the interruptions themselves, and the environment may influence patient safety and work-flow outcomes. Observational studies present significant challenges for recording many of the process variables that influence the effects of interruptions. Controlled experiments provide an opportunity to examine the specific effects of variables on errors and efficiency. Computational models can be used to identify the situations in which interruptions to clinical tasks could be disruptive and to investigate the aggregate effects of interruptions.

A multifaceted intervention to reduce drug-related complications in surgical patients

AIM

The P-REVIEW study was a prospective, multicenter, open intervention study, designed to determine whether a multifaceted intervention of educating the prescriber combined with medication review and pharmaceutical visits to the ward by the hospital pharmacist could lead to a reduction in drug-related complications among surgical patients.

METHODS

A total of 6780 admissions of 5940 patients to surgical, urological and orthopaedic wards during the usual care period and 6484 admissions of 5711 patients during the intervention period were included. An educational programme covering pain management, antithrombotics, fluid and electrolyte management, prescription in case of renal insufficiency and antibiotics was developed. National and local hospital guidelines were included. Hospital pharmacists performed medication safety consultations, combining medication review of high-risk patients and a visit to the physician on the ward.

RESULTS

A significantly lower proportion of admissions with one or more clinically relevant, potentially preventable, drug-related problems (including death, temporary or sustained disability, increased length of hospital stay or readmission within 30 days) occurred in the intervention period (1.1% (73/6484) compared to the usual care period [1.6% (106/6780)] (P = 0.029). The relative risk (RR) was 0.72 (95% CI 0.53-0.97). Several types of drug-related problems occurred less frequently. Costs incurred as result of time spent on study-related activities were not different before and after the intervention.

CONCLUSIONS

The P-REVIEW study shows that education and support of the prescribing physician with respect to high-risk patients in surgical departments leads to a significant, clinically relevant benefit for patients without generating additional costs.

Compliance with the Health Information and Quality Authority of Ireland National Standard for Patient Discharge Summary Information: a retrospective study in secondary care

BACKGROUND

Unexplained changes to medication are common at hospital discharge and underscore the need to standardise patient discharge clinical documentation. In 2013, the Health Information and Quality Authority in Ireland published a Standard on the structure and content of discharge summaries. The intention was to ensure that all necessary information was complete and communicated to the next care provider.

OBJECTIVES

This study investigated one Hospital's compliance with the Standard, and appraised two methods of electronic discharge communication (Symphony or Tallaght Education and Audit Management System (TEAMS)).

METHOD

A retrospective survey of 198 randomly selected discharge summaries was conducted at the study hospital, a 600 bed academic teaching hospital located in Dublin, Ireland.

RESULTS

Of the 198 evaluated summaries, mean total compliance was 77%±4.2 (95% CI 76.3 to 77.5). Most (84.7%, n=173) summaries were completed using one of the systems (TEAMS). Absence of communication about alteration of preadmission medication was frequent (107 out of 130 patients (82.3%, CI 76.2 to 89.2)). Higher compliance rates were observed however, when information was interfaced or where there were dedicated fields to be completed.

CONCLUSIONS

Efforts to improve compliance with the National Standard for Patient Discharge Summary Information should focus on reporting changes made to medication during hospitalisation.

Effects of health information technology on patient outcomes: a systematic review

OBJECTIVE

To systematically review studies assessing the effects of health information technology (health IT) on patient safety outcomes.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The authors employed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement methods. MEDLINE, Cumulative Index to Nursing Allied Health (CINAHL), EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases, from 2001 to June 2012, were searched. Descriptive and comparative studies were included that involved use of health IT in a clinical setting and measured effects on patient safety outcomes.

RESULTS

Data on setting, subjects, information technology implemented, and type of patient safety outcomes were all abstracted. The quality of the studies was evaluated by 2 independent reviewers (scored from 0 to 10). A total of 69 studies met inclusion criteria. Quality scores ranged from 1 to 9. There were 25 (36%) studies that found benefit of health IT on direct patient safety outcomes for the primary outcome measured, 43 (62%) studies that either had non-significant or mixed findings, and 1 (1%) study for which health IT had a detrimental effect. Neither the quality of the studies nor the rate of randomized control trials performed changed over time. Most studies that demonstrated a positive benefit of health IT on direct patient safety outcomes were inpatient, single-center, and either cohort or observational trials studying clinical decision support or computerized provider order entry.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

Many areas of health IT application remain understudied and the majority of studies have non-significant or mixed findings. Our study suggests that larger, higher quality studies need to be conducted, particularly in the long-term care and ambulatory care settings.

Medical care and drug-related problems: Do doctors and pharmacists speak the same language?

Optimal communication between physicians and pharmacists is important for patient care. However, pharmacists and doctors do not always seem to understand each other. They have been professionalized differently, and do not always speak the same language. Especially in the areas of prescribing, medication review, and medicine use, there can be differences in views. This contribution clarifies some essential concepts that doctors and pharmacists use. Thus we hope that our commentary contributes to a better understanding of each other's role and the importance of interprofessional cooperation for the benefit of the patient.

A Delphi study among internal medicine clinicians to determine which therapeutic information is essential to record in a medical record

Several studies have demonstrated that using a template for recording general and diagnostic information in the medical record (MR) improves the completeness of MR documentation, communication between doctors, and performance of doctors. However, little is known about how therapeutic information should be structured in the MR. The aim of this study was to investigate which specific therapeutic information registrars and consultants in internal medicine consider essential to record in the MR. Therefore, we carried out a 2-round Internet Delphi study. Fifty-nine items were assessed on a 5-point scale; an item was considered important if ≥ 80% of the respondents awarded it a score of 4 or 5. In total, 26 registrars and 30 consultants in internal medicine completed both rounds of the study. Overall, they considered it essential to include information about 11 items in the MR. Subgroup analyses revealed that the registrars considered 8 additional items essential, whereas the consultants considered 1 additional item essential to record. Study findings can be used as a starting point to develop a structured section of the MR for therapeutic information for both paper and electronic MRs. This section should contain at least 11 items considered essential by registrars and clinical consultants in internal medicine.

Task analysis of information technology-mediated medication management in outpatient care

Aims

Educating physicians in the procedural as well as cognitive skills of information technology (IT)-mediated medication management could be one of the missing links for the improvement of patient safety. We aimed to compose a framework of tasks that need to be addressed to optimize medication management in outpatient care.

Methods

Formal task analysis: decomposition of a complex task into a set of subtasks. First, we obtained a general description of the medication management process from exploratory interviews. Secondly, we interviewed experts in-depth to further define tasks and subtasks. Setting: Outpatient care in different fields of medicine in six teaching and academic medical centres in the Netherlands and the United States. Participants: 20 experts. Tasks were divided up into procedural, cognitive and macrocognitive tasks and categorized into the three components of dynamic decision making.

Results

The medication management process consists of three components: (i) reviewing the medication situation; (ii) composing a treatment plan; and (iii) accomplishing and communicating a treatment and surveillance plan. Subtasks include multiple cognitive tasks such as composing a list of current medications and evaluating the reliability of sources, and procedural tasks such as documenting current medication. The identified macrocognitive tasks were: planning, integration of IT in workflow, managing uncertainties and responsibilities, and problem detection.

Conclusions

All identified procedural, cognitive and macrocognitive skills should be included when designing education for IT-mediated medication management. The resulting framework supports the design of educational interventions to improve IT-mediated medication management in outpatient care.

Measuring the severity of prescribing errors: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Prescribing errors are common. It has been suggested that the severity as well as the frequency of errors should be assessed when measuring prescribing error rates. This would provide more clinically relevant information, and allow more complete evaluation of the effectiveness of interventions designed to reduce errors.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this systematic review was to describe the tools used to assess prescribing error severity in studies reporting hospital prescribing error rates.

DATA SOURCES

The following databases were searched: MEDLINE, EMBASE, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, and CINAHL (January 1985-January 2013).

STUDY SELECTION

We included studies that reported the detection and rate of prescribing errors in prescriptions for adult and/or pediatric hospital inpatients, or elaborated on the properties of severity assessment tools used by these studies. Studies not published in English, or that evaluated errors for only one disease or drug class, one route of administration, or one type of prescribing error, were excluded, as were letters and conference abstracts. One reviewer screened all abstracts and obtained complete articles. A second reviewer assessed 10 % of all abstracts and complete articles to check reliability of the screening process.

APPRAISAL

Tools were appraised for country and method of development, whether the tool assessed actual or potential harm, levels of severity assessed, and results of any validity and reliability studies.

RESULTS

Fifty-seven percent of 107 studies measuring prescribing error rates included an assessment of severity. Forty tools were identified that assessed severity, only two of which had acceptable reliability and validity. In general, little information was given on the method of development or ease of use of the tools, although one tool required four reviewers and was thus potentially time consuming.

LIMITATIONS

The review was limited to studies written in English. One of the review authors was also the author of one of the tools, giving a potential source of bias.

CONCLUSION

A wide range of severity assessment tools are used in the literature. Developing a basis of comparison between tools would potentially be helpful in comparing findings across studies. There is a potential need to establish a less time-consuming method of measuring severity of prescribing error, with acceptable international reliability and validity.

Quality of pharmaceutical care in surgical patients

Background

Surgical patients are at risk for preventable adverse drug events (ADEs) during hospitalization. Usually, preventable ADEs are measured as an outcome parameter of quality of pharmaceutical care. However, process measures such as QIs are more efficient to assess the quality of care and provide more information about potential quality improvements.

Objective

To assess the quality of pharmaceutical care of medication-related processes in surgical wards with quality indicators, in order to detect targets for quality improvements.

Methods

For this observational cohort study, quality indicators were composed, validated, tested, and applied on a surgical cohort. Three surgical wards of an academic hospital in the Netherlands (Academic Medical Centre, Amsterdam) participated. Consecutive elective surgical patients with a hospital stay longer than 48 hours were included from April until June 2009. To assess the quality of pharmaceutical care, the set of quality indicators was applied to 252 medical records of surgical patients.

Results

Thirty-four quality indicators were composed and tested on acceptability and content- and face-validity. The selected 28 candidate quality indicators were tested for feasibility and ‘sensitivity to change’. This resulted in a final set of 27 quality indicators, of which inter-rater agreements were calculated (kappa 0.92 for eligibility, 0.74 for pass-rate). The quality of pharmaceutical care was assessed in 252 surgical patients. Nearly half of the surgical patients passed the quality indicators for pharmaceutical care (overall pass rate 49.8%). Improvements should be predominantly targeted to medication care related processes in surgical patients with gastro-intestinal problems (domain pass rate 29.4%).

Conclusions

This quality indicator set can be used to measure quality of pharmaceutical care and detect targets for quality improvements. With these results medication safety in surgical patients can be enhanced.

Cost-effectiveness of an electronic medication ordering system (CPOE/CDSS) in hospitalized patients

INTRODUCTION

Prescribing medication is an important aspect of almost all in-hospital treatment regimes. Besides their obviously beneficial effects, medicines can also cause adverse drug events (ADE), which increase morbidity, mortality and health care costs. Partially, these ADEs arise from medication errors, e.g. at the prescribing stage. ADEs caused by medication errors are preventable ADEs. Until now, medication ordering was primarily a paper-based process and consequently, it was error prone. Computerized Physician Order Entry, combined with basic Clinical Decision Support System (CPOE/CDSS) is considered to enhance patient safety. Limited information is available on the balance between the health gains and the costs that need to be invested in order to achieve these positive effects. Aim of this study was to study the balance between the effects and costs of CPOE/CDSS compared to the traditional paper-based medication ordering.

METHODS

The economic evaluation was performed alongside a clinical study (interrupted time series design) on the effectiveness of CPOE/CDSS, including a cost minimization and a cost-effectiveness analysis. Data collection took place between 2005 and 2008. Analyses were performed from a hospital perspective. The study was performed in a general teaching hospital and a University Medical Centre on general internal medicine, gastroenterology and geriatric wards. Computerized Physician Order Entry, combined with basic Clinical Decision Support System (CPOE/CDSS) was compared to a traditional paper based system. All costs of both medication ordering systems are based on resources used and time invested. Prices were expressed in Euros (price level 2009). Effectiveness outcomes were medication errors and preventable adverse drug events.

RESULTS

During the paper-based prescribing period 592 patients were included, and during the CPOE/CDSS period 603. Total costs of the paper-based system and CPOE/CDSS amounted to €12.37 and €14.91 per patient/day respectively. The Incremental Cost-Effectiveness Ratio (ICER) for medication errors was 3.54 and for preventable adverse drug events 322.70, indicating the extra amount (€) that has to be invested in order to prevent one medication error or one pADE.

CONCLUSIONS

CPOE with basic CDSS contributes to a decreased risk of preventable harm. Overall, the extra costs of CPOE/CDSS needed to prevent one ME or one pADE seem to be acceptable.

Prescription and transcription errors in multidose-dispensed medications on discharge from hospital: an observational and interventional study

BACKGROUND

Medication errors frequently occur when patients are transferred between health care settings. The main objective of this study was to investigate the frequency, type and severity of prescribing and transcribing errors for drugs dispensed in multidose plastic packs when patients are discharged from the hospital. The secondary objective was to correct identified errors and suggest measures to promote safe prescribing.

METHODS

The drugs on the patients' multidose drug dispensing (MDD) order sheets and the medication administration records were reconciled prior to the MDD orders being sent to the pharmacy for dispensing. Discrepancies were recorded and the prescribing physician was notified and given the opportunity to change the order. Discrepancies categorized as unintentional and related to the discharge process were subject to further analysis.

RESULTS

Seventy-two (25%) of the 290 reviewed MDD orders had at least one discharge error. In total, 120 discharge errors were identified, of which 49 (41%) were assessed as being of moderate and three (3%) of major severity. Orders with a higher number of medications and orders from the orthopaedic wards had a significantly higher error rate.

CONCLUSION

The main purpose of the MDD system is to increase patient safety by reducing medication errors. However, this study shows that prescribing and transcribing errors frequently occur when patients are hospitalized. Because the population enrolled in the MDD system is an elderly, physically vulnerable group with a high number of prescribed drugs, preventive measures to ensure safe prescribing of MDD drugs are warranted.

Risk analysis and user satisfaction after implementation of computerized physician order entry in Dutch hospitals

BACKGROUND

Computerized physician order entry (CPOE) in hospitals is widely considered to be important for patient safety, but implementation is lagging behind and user satisfaction is often low. Risk analysis methods may improve the implementation process and thus user satisfaction. Objective The aim of our study was to determine the association of performing risk analysis with user satisfaction after implementation of CPOE. Setting All hospitals in the Netherlands.

METHOD

A cross-sectional study using a questionnaire was performed. All Dutch hospital pharmacies were asked about the extent of implementation of CPOE in the hospitals they served, the performance of (retrospective or prospective) risk analysis and the satisfaction with CPOE of doctors, nurses and pharmacists. Only hospitals that had implemented inpatient CPOE on at least 70 % of the wards were included in the primary analysis.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

The primary outcome measure was the proportion of hospital pharmacists with a satisfaction level of 4 or 5 (i.e. 'satisfied'). The secondary outcome measure was the proportion of medical doctors and nurses with a satisfaction level of 4 or 5 (i.e. satisfied). The main determinant was the performance of a formal method of prospective or retrospective risk analysis.

RESULTS

The questionnaire was sent to all 79 Dutch hospital pharmacies. Questionnaires were returned by 70 hospital pharmacies, serving 72 separate hospitals. In 40 hospitals the CPOE was implemented on at least 70 % of the wards. The association of risk analysis with the proportion of satisfied users was determined within this group of 40 hospitals. For hospital pharmacists we found that the performance of risk analysis showed a statistically non-significant trend towards an association with satisfaction [OR 3.3 (95 % CI 0.8-14.1)]. For medical doctors the performance of risk analysis was associated with satisfaction [OR 10.0 (95 % CI 1.8-56.0)]. Also a statistically non-significant trend towards an association with satisfaction was found for nurses [OR 4.5 (95 % CI 0.8-24.7)].

CONCLUSION

Although not statistically significant, the user satisfaction with CPOE seems to be associated with the performance of risk analysis during the implementation of CPOE. This suggests that the CPOE implementation process can be optimized by performing risk analysis before and/or after implementation.

Risk factors for prescribing and transcribing medication errors among elderly patients during acute hospitalization: a cohort, case-control study

BACKGROUND

Medication errors are the cause of common and dangerous adverse effects on patients. They occur as a result of preventable failures in the prescribing (ordering), transcribing, dispensing and administration of medications.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between patient characteristics and prescribing and transcribing medication errors during acute hospitalization of elderly patients in an internal medicine ward.

METHODS

A cohort case-control study was conducted in a 37-bed medical ward at a tertiary medical centre in Israel. The study included 137 patients in whom potentially harmful medication errors were detected, and 137 sex- and age-matched controls. Clinical data were collected and Charlson Comorbidity Index scores were calculated. Conditional logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with medication errors.

RESULTS

Independent factors associated with any type of medication error included Charlson Comorbidity Index score ≥8 (odds ratio [OR] 2.97 [95% CI 1.16, 7.61], p  =  0.023), number of medications ≥ 9 (OR 2.02 [95% CI 1.00, 4.05], p  =  0.049) [both upon admission] and length of hospital stay ≥ 13 days (OR 4.41 [95% CI 2.25, 8.62], p  <  0.0001). Independent factors associated with prescribing errors included Charlson Comorbidity Index score ≥ 8 (OR 6.34 [95% CI 1.63, 24.71], p  =  0.008) and length of hospital stay ≥13 days (OR 3.19 [95% CI 1.23, 8.26], p  =  0.017), while independent factors associated with transcribing errors included number of medications ≥9 (OR 2.58 [95% CI 1.02, 6.51], p  =  0.04) and length of hospital stay ≥ 13 days (OR 6.90 [95% CI 2.76, 17.23], p  <  0.0001). The median time to an error was 3 days, and was half as long for prescribing errors as for transcribing errors (2 and 4 days, respectively, p = 0.017).

CONCLUSIONS

The risk of medication errors among elderly patients during acute hospitalization in an internal medicine ward is associated with Charlson Comorbidity Index score (for prescribing errors), number of medications (for transcribing errors) and length of hospital stay (for both types of errors). Further study will determine whether these factors can be used to identify patients at risk and to prevent prescribing and transcribing medication errors.

Impact of a pharmacist-prepared interim residential care medication administration chart on gaps in continuity of medication management after discharge from hospital to residential care: a prospective pre- and post-intervention study (MedGap Study)

OBJECTIVES

To test the impact of a hospital pharmacist-prepared interim residential care medication administration chart (IRCMAC) on medication administration errors and use of locum medical services after discharge from hospital to residential care.

DESIGN

Prospective pre-intervention and post-intervention study.

SETTING

One major acute care hospital and one subacute aged-care hospital; 128 residential care facilities (RCF) in Victoria, Australia.

PARTICIPANTS

428 patients (median age 84 years, IQR 79-88) discharged to a RCF from an inpatient ward over two 12-week periods.

INTERVENTION

Seven-day IRCMAC auto-populated with patient and medication data from the hospitals' pharmacy dispensing software, completed and signed by a hospital pharmacist and sent with the patient to the RCF.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES

Primary end points were the proportion of patients with one or more missed or significantly delayed (>50% of prescribed dose interval) medication doses, and the proportion of patients whose RCF medication chart was written by a locum doctor, in the 24 h after discharge. Secondary end points included RCF staff and general practitioners' opinions about the IRCMAC.

RESULTS

The number of patients who experienced one or more missed or delayed doses fell from 37/202 (18.3%) to 6/226 (2.7%) (difference in percentages 15.6%, 95% CI 9.5% to 21.9%, p<0.001). The number of patients whose RCF medication chart was written by a locum doctor fell from 66/202 (32.7%) to 25/226 (11.1%) (difference in percentages 21.6%, 95% CI 13.5% to 29.7%, p<0.001). For 189/226 (83.6%) discharges, RCF staff reported that the IRCMAC improved continuity of care; 31/35 (88.6%) general practitioners said that the IRCMAC reduced the urgency for them to attend the RCF and 35/35 (100%) said that IRCMACs should be provided for all patients discharged to a RCF.

CONCLUSIONS

A hospital pharmacist-prepared IRCMAC significantly reduced medication errors and use of locum medical services after discharge from hospital to residential care.

Appropriateness of ambulatory prescriptions in Taiwan: translating claims data into initiatives

BACKGROUND

Appropriate prescribing is fundamental to successful pharmacotherapy. The status of current ambulatory medication practices in medicine and pharmacy would be better understood through an analysis of community pharmacy prescription claims.

OBJECTIVE

The aims of the study were to investigate patterns of the types of prescriptions claimed by community pharmacies, undetected prescription errors by community pharmacists, and associated factors of prescription errors.

SETTING

A population-based claims database of prescriptions dispensed by community pharmacies in Taiwan.

METHODS

Ambulatory prescriptions were randomly sampled and reassessed for prescribing appropriateness by medical center pharmacists using explicit criteria. Demographics of patients, physicians, care facilities, and prescription/dispensing details were assessed and used to identify associated factors for prescription errors using descriptive analyses as well as logistic regression.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Erroneous prescriptions prescribed by physicians, and dispensed and claimed through community pharmacies.

RESULTS

The study included analyses of 3065 prescriptions dispensed in community pharmacies resulting from 1003 patient visits, mostly to physician or dental clinics (99.5%). Prescribing characteristics, patterns, and examples of prescription errors are described. Prescription errors were identified in 18.3% (n = 560) of prescriptions and 34.9% (n = 350) of patient visits. Potential prescribing errors included errors of omission (25.5%), errors of commission (53.4%), and others (21.1%). The top three errors were incorrect dosage (27.5%), missing indication (23.6%), and insufficient or unavailable drug information (18.9%). Drugs most frequently associated with prescription errors included antihistamines, hormones, and gastrointestinal agents. Prescription were also higher in the central and eastern regions of Taiwan. Pediatricians accounted for a disproportionate number of prescription errors.

CONCLUSION

Prescription errors are prevalent in ambulatory care in Taiwan, and differential practice standards exist between community and hospital services. This disparity needs to be reconciled by pertinent initiatives to enhance community-hospital and pharmacist-general practitioner communication and interprofessional educational efforts to improve medication use and safety.

Preventable and non-preventable adverse drug events in hospitalized patients: a prospective chart review in the Netherlands

BACKGROUND

Medication safety research and clinical pharmacy practice today is primarily focused on managing preventable adverse drug events (pADEs). Determinants of both pADEs and non-preventable adverse drug reactions (ADRs) have been identified. However, relatively little is known on the overlap between these determinants and the balance of preventable and non-preventable harm inpatients experience in modern computerized hospitals.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to analyse the prevalence of pADEs and non-preventable ADRs as well as the determinants, including multimorbidity, of these ADEs, i.e. both pADEs and ADRs.

METHODS

Adverse events experienced by patients admitted to two Dutch hospitals with functioning computerized physician order entry (CPOE) systems were prospectively identified through chart review. Adverse events were divided into pADEs (i.e. as a result of a medication error) and non-preventable ADRs. In both cases, a causal relationship between adverse events and patients' drugs was established using the simplified Yale algorithm. Study data were collected anytime between April 2006 and May 2008 over a 5-month period at each hospital ward included in the study, beginning from 8 weeks after CPOE was implemented at the ward.

RESULTS

pADEs and non-preventable ADRs were experienced by 349 (58%) patients, of whom 307 (88%) had non-preventable ADRs. Multimorbidity (adjusted odds ratio [OR(adj)] 1.90; 95% CI 1.44, 2.50; OR(adj) 1.28; 95% CI 1.14, 1.45, respectively), length of stay (OR(adj) 1.13; 95% CI 1.06, 1.21; OR(adj) 1.11; 95% CI 1.07, 1.16, respectively), admission to the geriatric ward (OR(adj) 7.78; 95% CI 2.15, 28.13; OR(adj) 3.82; 95% CI 1.73, 8.45, respectively) and number of medication orders (OR(adj) 1.25; 95% CI 1.16, 1.35; OR(adj) 1.13; 95% CI 1.06, 1.21, respectively) were statistically significantly associated with pADEs and ADRs. Admission to the gastroenterology/rheumatology ward (OR(adj) 0.22; 95% CI 0.06, 0.77; OR(adj) 0.40; 95% CI 0.24, 0.65, respectively) was inversely related to both pADEs and ADRs. Other determinants for ADRs only were female sex (OR(adj) 1.77; 95% CI 1.12, 2.80) and use of drugs affecting the nervous system (OR(adj) 1.83; 95% CI 1.09, 3.07). Age was a significant determinant for pADEs only (OR(adj) 1.07; 95% CI 1.03, 1.11).

CONCLUSIONS

In this study more than half of the patients admitted to the hospitals are harmed by drugs, of which most are non-serious, non-preventable ADRs (after the introduction of CPOE). Determinants of both pADEs and ADRs overlap to a large extent. Our results imply the need for signalling early potential adverse events that occur during the normal use of drugs in multimorbid patients or those in geriatric wards. Subsequent therapeutic interventions may improve the well-being of hospitalized patients to a greater extent than focusing on errors in the medication process only.

The role of computerized decision support in reducing errors in selecting medicines for prescription: narrative review

This narrative review includes a summary of research examining prescribing errors, prescription decision making and the role computerized decision support plays in this decision-making process. A reduction in medication prescribing errors, specifically a reduction in the selection of inappropriate medications, is expected to result from the implementation of an effective computerized decision support system. Previous research has investigated the impact of the implementation of electronic systems on medication errors more broadly. This review examines the specific characteristics of decision support systems that may contribute to fewer knowledge-based mistakes in prescribing, and critically appraises the large volume of information available on the decision-making process of selecting medicines for prescription. The results highlight a need for work investigating what decision strategies are used by doctors with different levels of expertise in the prescribing of medications. The nature of the relationship between decision support and decision performance is not well understood and future research is needed to determine the mechanisms by which computerized decision support influences medication selection.

Medication details documented on hospital discharge: cross-sectional observational study of factors associated with medication non-reconciliation

AIMS

Movement into or out of hospital is a vulnerable period for medication safety. Reconciling the medication a patient is using before admission with the medication prescribed on discharge, and documenting any changes (medication reconciliation) is recommended to improve safety. The aims of the study were to investigate the factors contributing to medication reconciliation on discharge, and identify the prevalence of non-reconciliation.

METHODS

The study was a cross-sectional, observational survey using consecutive discharges from purposively selected services in two acute public hospitals in Ireland. Medication reconciliation, potential for harm and unplanned re-admission were investigated.

RESULTS

Medication non-reconciliation was identified in 50% of 1245 inpatient episodes, involving 16% of 9569 medications. The majority of non-reconciled episodes had potential to result in moderate (63%) or severe (2%) harm. Handwritten rather than computerized discharges (adjusted odds ratio (adjusted OR) 1.60, 95% CI 1.11, 2.99), increasing number of medications (adjusted OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.21, 1.31) or chronic illness (adjusted OR 2.08, 95% CI 1.33, 3.24) were associated with non-reconciliation. Omission of endocrine, central nervous system and nutrition and blood drugs was more likely on discharge, whilst omission on admission and throughout inpatient care, without documentation, was more likely for obstetric, gynaecology and urinary tract (OGU) or respiratory drugs. Documentation in the discharge communication that medication was intentionally stopped during inpatient care was less likely for cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and OGU drugs. Errors involving the dose were most likely for respiratory drugs.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings inform strategies to facilitate medication reconciliation on discharge from acute hospital care.

Analysis of prescribing practices in an acute psychiatric ward

OBJECTIVES

Prescription writing is a basic clinical skill for all doctors; however, errors in prescriptions are frequent and can result in significant harm to patients both from sub-therapeutic dosages and from over prescribing. This study examines the prescribing practices of 'as required' medications in an acute psychiatric inpatient unit attached to a university teaching hospital.

METHOD

A clinical audit was conducted to examine both prescribing practices of 'as required' medication and recording of 'as required' medication in nursing notes. A series of educational interventions were undertaken in an attempt to improve prescribing practices in relation to 'as required' medication and two further audits were completed to assess any change in practice and whether such changes were sustained.

RESULTS

Psycho-education led to an improvement in a number of prescribing practices, including increased generic prescribing, improved documentation of indications for medication administration and increased writing of medication dosages in acceptable abbreviations. These benefits were maintained four months after the education interventions. Rates of documenting the frequency of medication correctly and recording the administration of medication in nursing notes remained low.

CONCLUSION

Our audit cycle clearly demonstrates that education can ameliorate prescribing practices and these improvements were maintained four months after education was delivered. However some aspects of prescribing practice remained deficient, and more focused educational interventions are required in these areas.

The epidemiology of medication errors: how many, how serious?

1. Errors will always occur in any system, but it is essential to identify causes and attempt to minimize risks. 2. Although it is difficult to quantify precisely the extent of medication errors, they are clearly frequent and often avoidable, representing a major threat to patient safety. 3. Many of the consequences of these errors can be prevented by the intervention of pharmacists. 4. Some errors are due to the conditions under which prescribers work; where possible these should be improved (for example, low staffing levels). 5. Computerized prescribing can help but can also generate its own inherent errors. 6. Improved training of prescribers at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels is vital, a fact that is now being belatedly recognized.

Detection of prescription errors by a unit-based clinical pharmacist in a nephrology ward

OBJECTIVE

To determine the impact of a clinical pharmacist on detection and prevention of prescription errors at the nephrology ward of a referral hospital.

SETTING

Nephrology ward of a major referral hospital in Southern Iran.

METHOD

During a 4-month period, a clinical pharmacist was assigned to review medication order sheets and drug orders three times a week at the nephrology ward. Besides chart review, the clinical pharmacist participated in medical rounds once a week. The occurrence of prescribing errors, and related harm was determined on hospitalized patients in this ward during the 4 month period. When an error was detected, intervention was made after agreement of the attending physician.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Number and types of prescribing errors, level of harm, and number of interventions were determined.

RESULTS

Seventy six patient charts were reviewed during the 4-month period. A total of 818 medications were ordered in these patients. Eighty six prescribing errors were detected in 46 hospital admissions. The mean age of the patients was 47.7 +/- 17.2. Fifty five percent were male while 45% were female. Different types of prescribing errors and their frequencies were as follows: wrong frequency (37.2%), wrong drug selection (19.8%), overdose (12.8%), failure to discontinue (10.5%), failure to order (7 %), under- dose (3.5%), wrong time (3.5%), monitoring (3.5%), wrong route (1.2%), and drug interaction (1.2 %). The attending physician agreed to 96.5% of the prescription errors detected, and interventions were made. Although 89.5% of the detected errors caused no harm, 4(4.7%) of the errors increased the need for monitoring, 2 (2.3%) increased length of stay, and 2 (2.3%) led to permanent patient harm.

CONCLUSION

presence of a clinical pharmacist at the nephrology ward helps in early detection of prescription errors, and therefore potential prevention of negative consequences due to drug administration.

The influence that electronic prescribing has on medication errors and preventable adverse drug events: an interrupted time-series study

OBJECTIVE

This study evaluated the effect of a Computerized Physician Order Entry system with basic Clinical Decision Support (CPOE/CDSS) on the incidence of medication errors (MEs) and preventable adverse drug events (pADEs).

DESIGN

Interrupted time-series design.

MEASUREMENTS

The primary outcome measurements comprised the percentage of medication orders with one or more MEs and the percentage of patients with one or more pADEs.

RESULTS

Pre-implementation, the mean percentage of medication orders containing at least one ME was 55%, whereas this became 17% post-implementation. The introduction of CPOE/CDSS has led to a significant immediate absolute reduction of 40.3% (95% CI: -45.13%; -35.48%) in medication orders with one or more errors. Pre-implementation, the mean percentage of admitted patients experiencing at least one pADE was 15.5%, as opposed to 7.3% post-implementation. However, this decrease could not be attributed to the introduction of CPOE/CDSS: taking into consideration the interrupted time-series design, the immediate change was not significant (-0.42%, 95% CI: -15.52%; 14.68%) because of the observed underlying negative trend during the pre-CPOE period of -4.04% [95% CI: -7.70%; -0.38%] per month.

CONCLUSIONS

This study has shown that CPOE/CDSS reduces the incidence of medication errors. However, a direct effect on actual patient harm (pADEs) was not demonstrated.