research process
Evaluation Research Paper
HCS 465
Evaluation Research Paper
There are many factors that can contribute to medication errors resulting in consequences to patients and nurses. Factors that may contribute to errors include illegible handwritten drug orders, confusing drug names, and the use of nonstandard or unclear abbreviations (Lippincott & Wilkins, 2009). For the patient, the effect of drug errors can range from no side effects to death. For the nurse who commits a medication error the consequences can range from additional training and supervision to lawsuits and revocation of licensure. Medication errors can occur at any area in the process of delivering medications to patients.
Establishing safety procedures by all healthcare professionals can help to reduce medication errors. Errors occurring during the administration process the five rights of medication administration being omitted: the right patient, medication, dose, route, and time, with the most frequent errors resulting from omission, wrong dose, and wrong medication (Lippincott & Wilkins, 2009). Factors that can result in medication errors include problems with the drug distribution system, inadequate staffing levels, distractions, nurses working in areas they have never worked in, and not following standard policy and procedure. According to Lippincott and Wilkins (2009) the following strategies are useful in addressing safety issues that revolve around medication errors: 1) reporting and analyzing errors using a multidisciplinary approach; 2) providing adequate staffing and training; 3) establishing and monitoring policies and procedures to ensure effectiveness and safety; and 4) all members of the healthcare team should have an awareness of how medication errors occur and be conscientious when administering medications. Attention to safe drug administration and safety guidelines is of particular importance in efforts to reduce medication errors and increase patient safety; it is an
HCS 465
Evaluation Research Paper
There are many factors that can contribute to medication errors resulting in consequences to patients and nurses. Factors that may contribute to errors include illegible handwritten drug orders, confusing drug names, and the use of nonstandard or unclear abbreviations (Lippincott & Wilkins, 2009). For the patient, the effect of drug errors can range from no side effects to death. For the nurse who commits a medication error the consequences can range from additional training and supervision to lawsuits and revocation of licensure. Medication errors can occur at any area in the process of delivering medications to patients.
Establishing safety procedures by all healthcare professionals can help to reduce medication errors. Errors occurring during the administration process the five rights of medication administration being omitted: the right patient, medication, dose, route, and time, with the most frequent errors resulting from omission, wrong dose, and wrong medication (Lippincott & Wilkins, 2009). Factors that can result in medication errors include problems with the drug distribution system, inadequate staffing levels, distractions, nurses working in areas they have never worked in, and not following standard policy and procedure. According to Lippincott and Wilkins (2009) the following strategies are useful in addressing safety issues that revolve around medication errors: 1) reporting and analyzing errors using a multidisciplinary approach; 2) providing adequate staffing and training; 3) establishing and monitoring policies and procedures to ensure effectiveness and safety; and 4) all members of the healthcare team should have an awareness of how medication errors occur and be conscientious when administering medications. Attention to safe drug administration and safety guidelines is of particular importance in efforts to reduce medication errors and increase patient safety; it is an
References: Lippincott, W., & Wilkins, . (2009, January/February). Medication Errors. Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing, 28(1), 51-52.