I have encountered many difficulties in my duty corridor practice. Only after spending a shift working with a recently-graduated nurse, did I realize how hazardous a minor drug error could be. Junior nurses instructed a patient with a heart condition to take 0.10 mg Digoxin. The nurse gave four 1mg tablets to the patient, which was an overdose. We administered an immediate antidote, stabilized the patient and then watched as the episodes piqued our interest in medical errors and the effects they had on client’s health.
Medicine errors: Root causes and solutions
Healthcare professionals are faced with a lot of medication errors. These mistakes can lead to patient death and safety. It is not known how many patients are killed or injured during the delivery of care. Healthcare personnel and caregivers are responsible for high rates of medication errors. Nearly all nurses and doctors have made errors but did not notify patients and their families. This knowledge shows that patient safety is dependent on interprofessional collaboration and actions by healthcare organisations.
New research shows that the most common cause of death is medical error. Improvements have been made over time. It is still not enough. One way to reduce medical errors in hospitals is to have handoff discussions. Shahid and Thomas (2018) state that insufficient communication between shift change staff is the leading cause of catastrophic medical errors. The Joint Commission states that medical errors are responsible for many deaths and serious injuries.