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Medication Errors
Medication errors are one of the most common preventable mistakes. Experts have estimated that more than one million serious medication errors occur annually in hospitals alone. The more medications a patient takes and the more people involved in the delivery of a medication, the greater the chance of an error. There are currently more than 10,000 medications on the market. Numerous medications have similar sounding names, which adds to the error potential. While many medication errors don’t injure patients, some have the potential for causing harm. It is well known that in any system that relies on human interface, discrepancies can occur. Hospitals nationwide have been considering medication delivery safeguards, which can include computerized and non-computerized technology. It is not unusual for a hospital to administer several hundred thousand medication doses each month. Patients can actively assist the healthcare team in striving to ensure that all medications are administered in the manner in which they were intended. Patients should not be afraid to tell the nurse or the physician if they believe they are about to receive the wrong medication. Patients are encouraged to ask about medications they are receiving. The healthcare team needs to be made aware of all allergies the patient may have or, negative reactions they may have had to medications in the past. The goal for medication is to be below 2%. This national benchmark is well above HMC’s medication administration error rate.
BENCHMARKS:
* Benchmarks are Standards or averages by which similar items can be compared.
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