The Importance Of Medication Errors In Nursing

When one decides to become a nurse, they are expected to uphold certain Standards of Care. Standards of Care lay a foundation all nurses need to achieve and sets guidelines for roles they must fulfill. One very important role of a nurse is to safely, competently, and correctly administer medications to their patient. However, with increasing workloads and lack of knowledge, medication errors are steadily rising. Meaning, we are left with an even greater need for Medication Error Awareness. According to American Nurse Today (2015, pg. 18), one of the most common healthcare mistakes is related to medication errors. In the United States, medication errors have caused hospital stays to lengthen and medical expenses to increase. Each

A couple of strategies include a custom alert to prevent medication-timing errors and reducing errors through discharge medication reconciliation by pharmacy services, and bar-code systems. By using the computerized prescriber order entry nurses are able to receive an electronic order from the physician. This system helps to vanish handwritten doctor orders that are illegible. In 2013, Virginia Mason took the computerized prescriber order entry system a step further. Virginia modified the system to implement a custom alert before signing any medication order that could possibly have an error. Her goal was to modify the system to make it impossible for medication-timing errors. Because of Virginia Mason, fifty percent of medication timing errors never reached the patient. When patient’s transition from one form of care to another, medication discrepancies become a high risk. Medication discrepancies are defined as unexplained differences among documented medications across different sites of care. (Pippins, 2008, pg. 1) Many medication discrepancies occur when the patient is being discharged from an acute care setting. Studies have shown that by including the pharmacist during the discharge process medication discrepancy numbers have decreased. During a study, pharmacists found 63 medication discrepancies out of 104 patients. They found patients 8

It is more than simply checking 5 rights and completing 3 checks. Those two steps are crucial but when looking at the big picture there is so much more. I cannot always rely on the computer system to catch my medication mistakes. I need to double check myself in the event technology fails. As a nursing student, I must devote as much time and effort into gaining the most knowledge as possible regarding medications and medication safety. The highest cause of medication errors is the lack of knowledge. While going through research I was not able to find a specific source explaining how medication errors effect nursing students. But because I am a nursing student, I can say medication errors do effect students. I’m learning how to administer medications in the safest possible way while learning everything I can about that medication. It is also about finding the courage to say I do not understand this medication yet, and for me to administer would not be in best interest of my patient. There is no way I could possibly know everything but I do know it is my responsibility to keep my patients safe. I do not want to lose a license, or even worse a patient, because I chose to cut corners and cheat myself from a fulfilling and rewarding education. Even after I graduate and obtain my license there will always be new knowledge to obtain and skills to be learned.