Medication errors are a persistent but preventable issue in healthcare. They majorly occur due to mistakes at any point in the medication process. In nursing, they majorly occur due to insufficient knowledge, workload, interruptions, burnout, and unclear guidelines (Wondmieneh et al., 2020). Medication errors are a problem with significant professional relevance as they have negative impacts on care quality and safety, the provider’s reputation, and negative economic outcomes. I have experienced how medication errors affect patient well-being and put a lot of stress and pressure on the care provider. For instance, I have witnessed minor situations and near misses. However, one case involving a newly employed physician ended up sending the patient to the emergency room as the patient had underlying hemophilia and the medication was blood thinner. This and the other cases made me explore various evidence-based interventions to prevent medication errors and improve the quality and safety I deliver.
Elliott, R. A., Camacho, E., Jankovic, D., Sculpher, M. J., & Faria, R. (2021). Economic analysis of the prevalence and clinical and economic burden of medication error in England. BMJ Quality & Safety, 30(2), 96–105. https://doi.org/10.1136/BMJQS-2019-010206
This article analyzes medication errors in England and provides their prevalence at the national level and their clinical and economic burden on the National Health Service (NHS) in England. The article notes that the annual cost of medication errors in England is estimated to be over £237 million, with 38.4% occurring in primary care. Additionally, the study also notes that out of these, 72% are not clinically significant, while 66 million cause notable clinical harm. A majority of these, 34%, are related to errors in prescription. The obviously avoidable errors cost the NHS over £98 million annually and stress the NHS as they add to 181 626 bed-days and cause 1708 deaths. This article is included in this review as it provides both economic and quality of care effects of medication errors. Healthcare providers and policymakers can use the evidence from the article to improve medication processes.
Gates, P. J., Hardie, R. A., Raban, M. Z., Li, L., & Westbrook, J. I. (2021). How effective are electronic medication systems in reducing medication error rates and associated harm among hospital inpatients? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 28(1), 167–176. https://doi.org/10.1093/JAMIA/OCAA230
This article presents a systematic review and meta-analysis of 18 articles aimed at evaluating how the implementation of an electronic medication system (EMS) changes medication error rates and reduces associated patient harm, as well as the actual evidence of the efficacy of EMS within care settings. The study notes that, despite the available evidence on the application of EMS in medication prescription, the evidence has a lot of variability in presenting their findings. Regardless, the authors conclude that the reviewed evidence notes that once implemented in the medication process, the EMS system has the potential to significantly reduce the error rates in medication prescription and administration, as well as the reduction of the medication-error associated harm by 50% and 40%, respectively. This article is relevant and was included as it explores and provides insights into medication errors and associated harm, as well as high-level evidence on the effectiveness of EMS in managing medication administration errors.
Sarfati, L., Ranchon, F., Vantard, N., Schwiertz, V., Larbre, V., Parat, S., Faudel, A., & Rioufol, C. (2019). Human-simulation-based learning to prevent medication error: A systematic review. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice, 25(1), 11–20. https://doi.org/10.1111/JEP.12883
This article presents a systematic review of 21 articles to determine the effectiveness of human simulation in healthcare in reducing medication errors. The study also aims to contribute to the current evidence on improving provider knowledge, skills, and attitudes to reduce medication errors without involving patients in the training. The article notes that human simulation-based learning had a significant effect on the prevention of medication errors. Human-simulation learning helps healthcare providers prevent medication errors by improving their knowledge, skills, and attitudes toward medication safety. The authors conclude
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