Event Title
Medication Errors Presentation
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Susan McLennon, PhD, ANP-BC and Dr. Kathleen Thompson, PhD, RN, CNE
Department (e.g. History, Chemistry, Finance, etc.)
Nursing
College (e.g. College of Engineering, College of Arts & Sciences, Haslam College of Business, etc.)
College of Nursing
Year
2017
Abstract
Abstract
Objective
To explore and determine the most effective intervention(s) that have been shown to reduce external interruptions/distractions leading to medication errors.
Design
Analysis of twelve scholarly articles including four additional introduction articles and studies that discussed, observed and analyzed the effects of medication errors and interventions for improvement.
Background
Medication errors are a prominent aspect of health care and medication administration. External interruptions have been found to be a primary contributing factor to MAEs. Therefore, interventions to prevent these external interruptions and MAEs should be evaluated to produce the most favorable patient outcomes.
Methods
The method by which articles were found was by searching various databases such as PubMed, CINAHL, and Ovid. Search terms included variations of the terms “medication administration errors”, “interventions”, and “interruptions”. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were utilized to include the most recent and relevant articles that most accurately answered the posed research question. These methods yielded eleven research articles that were used in the review of literature.
Results
All of the interventions tested were found to be effective except for the didactic lecture implemented in Ford et al.’s study (2010). The interventions that were effective included technological interventions, educational interventions, visual cues to both the nurse administering the medications and multidisciplinary staff, delegation changes from the nurse administering medications to other staff, and various behavioral modification interventions.
Conclusion
Overall, a majority of the interventions meant to reduce medication administration errors (MAEs) by distractions were found to be effective. Because of this, a multifactorial approach was deemed most effective at reducing these errors. This multifactorial approach should incorporate technological interventions, educational interventions, visual cues, delegation changes, and various behavioral modification interventions to have the biggest impact. This set of interventions will likely reduce MAEs and the external interruptions that they are caused by.
Medication Errors Presentation
Abstract
Objective
To explore and determine the most effective intervention(s) that have been shown to reduce external interruptions/distractions leading to medication errors.
Design
Analysis of twelve scholarly articles including four additional introduction articles and studies that discussed, observed and analyzed the effects of medication errors and interventions for improvement.
Background
Medication errors are a prominent aspect of health care and medication administration. External interruptions have been found to be a primary contributing factor to MAEs. Therefore, interventions to prevent these external interruptions and MAEs should be evaluated to produce the most favorable patient outcomes.
Methods
The method by which articles were found was by searching various databases such as PubMed, CINAHL, and Ovid. Search terms included variations of the terms “medication administration errors”, “interventions”, and “interruptions”. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were utilized to include the most recent and relevant articles that most accurately answered the posed research question. These methods yielded eleven research articles that were used in the review of literature.
Results
All of the interventions tested were found to be effective except for the didactic lecture implemented in Ford et al.’s study (2010). The interventions that were effective included technological interventions, educational interventions, visual cues to both the nurse administering the medications and multidisciplinary staff, delegation changes from the nurse administering medications to other staff, and various behavioral modification interventions.
Conclusion
Overall, a majority of the interventions meant to reduce medication administration errors (MAEs) by distractions were found to be effective. Because of this, a multifactorial approach was deemed most effective at reducing these errors. This multifactorial approach should incorporate technological interventions, educational interventions, visual cues, delegation changes, and various behavioral modification interventions to have the biggest impact. This set of interventions will likely reduce MAEs and the external interruptions that they are caused by.