My responsibility as a medication safety pharmacy intern at the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center is to improve patient outcomes by reducing and preventing medication errors. One of my most recent projects was to research recommendations for improving patient safety for patients receiving multiple IV infusions. The risk for harm to the patient is increased when multiple IV lines are implemented as these medications are often high risk medications. The majority of medication events involved are classified as causing harm to the patient by the National Coordinating Council for Medication Error Reporting and Prevention (NCC MERP) with the most common medication being heparin. The three most common medication errors that occur with multiple IV infusions are: rate or line mix-ups, the IV line being disconnected from the patient, and errors associated with piggyback infusions. There have been safeguards implemented at different health systems to help reduce these errors including independent double checks and dose ranges for infusion pumps, however; standardization of techniques and IV line setup for patients’ on multiple IV infusions is lacking. Several organizations including the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory and the Human Era group have worked conducted compiled a series of recommendations for patients with multiple IV infusions:
Establishing standardized guidelines for the setup and monitoring of patients with multiple IV infusions will benefit health care systems by reducing the potential for significant medication errors. David ChenVP of Finance
1 Comment
5/7/2023 10:38:40 pm
I appreciate you pointing out the lack of standardization in IV line setup and procedure for patients receiving many IV infusions. My friend is ill. I'll advise her to have the IV infusions.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
Have an exciting topic about the managed care space or pharmaceutical industry you would like to share?
Showcase your writing skills and have your post featured in the AMCP-OSU Blog by reaching out to the VP of Communications, Pia Georgette Ang. Archives |