Medication Administration Flashcards
(50 cards)
What percentage of patients experience a medication error
3% - 6.9%
What contributes to medication errors
System processes
Workload
Lack of communication and collaboration
Inadequate education
Work arounds
What must be reported
Errors and near misses
(In order to induce change)
What is a near miss
Exposed but not harmed d/t detection or luck
Errors can begin at what stage and are followed until what stage
Prescribing stage followed by the administration phase
Potential errors are not eliminated by
Technology
(Do not assume and question any issue)
Nurses need to do what involving medication errors
Nurses need to meet the standards of practice
Who does the prescribing phase
HCP or pharmacist
Who does the transcribing phase
Nurse
Who does the dispensing phase
Pharmacist
Who does the administering phase
Nurse
Who does the monitoring phase
Nurse, physician, pharmacist
Failure to assess/evaluate would include
Failure to…
-See significant changes in patient’s condition after taking a medication
-report the changes in condition after medication
-take a complete medication history and nursing assessment/history
-monitor patient after medication administration
Failure to ensure safety would include
-lack of adequate monitoring
-Failure to identify patient allergies and other risk factors related to medication therapy
-inappropriate drug administration technique
-failure to implement appropriate nursing actions based on a lack of proper assessment of patient’s condition
Medication errors would include
Failure to…
-clarify unclear medication order
-identify and react to adverse drug reactions
-be familiar with medication before its administration
-maintain level of profesional nursing skills for current practice
-identify patients identity before drug administration
-document drug administration in medication profile
Fraud would include
-Falsification of documentation on the medication profile or patient’s record
-failure to provide the nursing care that was documented
What are the rights of medication administration
-right drug
-right dose
-right time
-right route and form
-right patient
-right documentation
-right reason
-right reason
-right response
-right to refuse
What are the components of a medication order
-patients name
-medication name
-dose with unit measurement
-frequency
-route
-prescribers signature w/date and time
(indication may not be indicated with PRN)
What are the causes of medication errors
-not doing “three checks”
-giving medications to the wrong patient
-confusing sound a-like and look alike drugs
-not obtaining a through medical history
-lack of knowledge
-dosing miscalculations
-work arounds
-environmental factors
How can a nurse prevent medication errors
-assess drug allergies, vital signs, and lab data
-never administer drugs you did not prepare yourself
-recalculate doses for high alert and pediatric patients and second RN
-avoid verbal orders if possible
-use authoritative sources
-question the need for overriding systems
-investigate patient concerns
-seek translators when needed
- ask questions (no question is stupid)
-report errors and near misses
When reporting and documenting errors you should
-assess patient first
-report to the instructor and nurse
-monitor changes in condition
-document follow up assessments using factual information (dont use the word error bc it is judgmental)
-notify physician and follow up orders
-provide full disclosure to the patient
-file incident report (not in the chart)
What do you do if a medication order has a missing component
Call the physician
ISMP
Institute of safe medication practices
Primary purpose is identifying the causes of medication errors and of recommending evidence based strategies for the prevention of these errors
What has the ISMP done
Made a list of error prone abbreviations, symbols, and dose designations
Identify high alert medications that have increased potential for patient harm
Made a list of the look alike/sound alike drugs
