Manage all prescriptions to prevent mistakes

Try to focus on reducing stress levels to prevent mistakes

A heavy workload leads to more stress.  More stress is often cited as a contributing factor in taking and dispensing   mistakes.   Hospitals that do not have sufficient staffing  will have an increase in reported errors. People need to take regular breaks  to reduce stress levels.  For example, take some time off for snack breaks.  Again, this has been clinically proven to reduce some of the dispensing errors.

pill reminderThoroughly check all prescriptions

The number of medication errors is staggering.  In fact, it has been estimated that over 100 Thousand people suffer a premature death every year.  This being said, there are way to manage all prescription to prevent errors.  For example, basic organization or a smart pill holder.  A few moments of preparation can save lives and improve well being

Take the needed time to store drugs properly

Manage prescriptions prevent mistakesOne way to avoid mix-ups among “look a like drugs” is to store them away from each other in the medication storage area. If the pills are in the medication cabinet , do this.  The medication bottles should have all labels facing front.  Make sure the manes are easily visible.    It is also a good idea to check all medications for expiration dates.  Discard any expired medications in the appropriate manner.

Use of storage bins, cabinets, or drawers can result in misplacement of look-alike drugs. Take extra care when transferring the pills to a pill box or pill organizer.  It is also advisable to lock up or sequester drugs with high potential of causing life threating misdosing.

Be sure to thoroughly check all prescriptions before dispensing

A great way Manage all prescriptions to prevent mistakes is as follows:  repeated checking and counterchecking.  This checking is an important strategy to reduce the chances of new dispensing errors. Pharmacist should always do a visual comparison with the written prescription and as that medication shows in the computer. 

 Confirmation bias and preconceived notions makes self-checking a poor method to reduce errors”, says Zachary Eli, regional manager for Med-Q Pill Reminder.  

A confirmation bias is a cognitive bias that favors information that confirms your previously existing beliefs or biases

If possible,  have the rechecking done by another “set of eyes”.  Normally another pharmacist. If not possible, delayed self-checking rather than continuous self-checking.

A delayed verification will allow the pharmacist to study the prescription from a fresh perspective.  Thus preventing the error that may not have been caught .   To sum up, Manage all prescriptions to prevent mistakes is a journey, not a destination.

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Caregivers need to balance heavy workloads

 Sharing responsibilities by clearly assigning duties to the staff will help them understand the expectations of the flow of work and may ultimately aid in reducing workplace stress, and, therefore, reduce medication errors.

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