Barcode Medication Administration Case Study

Barcode medication administration embodies the values of the five rights of medication administration by using a systematic and consistent process for each and every patient. It does so by prompting the nurse to scan the patient's armband to ensure patient identification. It then pulls that patient up and allows the nurse to access the medication profile (Ross, 2008). The nurse then scans the barcode that is on the medication package verifying they have the right medication, right dose and right route. If the medication matches the ordered dose and route, no further documentation is needed in most cases. However, it is when there is a discrepancy between these that nurses are made aware of the situation by an alert message that they must act
upon in order to continue (Dasgupta, Jacob, & Dwibedi, 2011). They must also scan their own name badge in order to confirm or document the provider that is administering the medication (Koppel et al., 2008). As with any change, some barriers exist in the initiation of the system. These may include implementation issues that include staff acceptance as well as potential for continued error due to staff finding workarounds to different aspects of the administration. There are also proven benefits with the system such as a decrease in errors and improved efficiency by staff. The alert messages and required action makes it harder for the nurse or provider to overlook warnings that may prevent possible adverse events.