Agency News and Notes

More safeguards needed to prevent adverse drug events caused by medication administration errors

Additional interventions are needed to prevent adverse drug events (ADEs) caused by administration errors in a hospital setting, according a new study funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. "Adverse Drug Events Caused by Serious Medication Administration Errors," was published online July 12 in the British Medical Journal of Quality & Safety.

Study researchers concluded that unintercepted potential ADEs at the medication administration stage can cause serious patient harm. At hospitals where 6 million doses are administered per year, about 4,000 preventable ADEs would be attributable to medication administration errors annually. The high incidence and cost implications for ADEs due to medication administration errors justify the need to target interventions to prevent these errors in a hospital setting.

To access the article abstract, please go to http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22791691.

Return to Contents
Proceed to Next Article