http://www.msnbc.com/news/805357.asp?0si=&cp1=1
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Another report said medical errors contribute to more than 1 million
injuries and up to 98,000 deaths annually. |
ERRORS OCCURRED
in nearly one of five doses in a typical, 300-bed hospital, which translates
to about two errors per patient daily. Seven percent of the errors were
considered potentially harmful. The study, which did not evaluate death or injury rates, is published in Sept. 9th’s Archives of Internal Medicine. It is based on data collected in 1999. The rates are similar to those in other reports on drug errors, but the new study highlights a specific point in the process of getting a drug to a patient: “administering errors” made by nurses or other hospital staffers after a doctor has properly prescribed a drug. ‘A MAJOR PROBLEM’ Other studies focused on earlier steps, such as doctors prescribing the wrong drug, or pharmacists incorrectly reading a doctor’s messy handwriting. |
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“It’s a major
problem, not a minor problem, and it doesn’t lend itself to an easy
solution,” said researcher Kenneth Barker, an Auburn University professor of
pharmacy care systems. Barker and colleagues evaluated hospitals accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, nonaccredited hospitals and nursing facilities. Error rates were similar, regardless of whether an institution was accredited. The researchers said their findings support implications in a highly publicized 1999 Institute of Medicine report suggesting that the nation’s hospitals have “major systems problems.” The IOM report said medical errors contribute to more than 1 million injuries and up to 98,000 deaths annually. 81 DAYS OF OBSERVATION Health-care workers trained for the new study were sent on-site and recorded errors during 81 days of observation. Potentially harmful errors included overdoses and instances when nurses failed to give patients prescribed medication. |
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The study follows the Joint
Commission’s recent announcement of six safety standards it will require
starting in January to reduce medical errors. The hospital regulatory agency
accredits most of the nation’s 6,000 hospitals. The new standards include demanding better methods of preventing drug errors, and hospitals that don’t measure up could risk losing accreditation and federal money. JCAHO says hospitals should use at least two “identifiers” — other than a patient’s hospital room number — to ensure that the right drug gets to the right patient. ID CHECKS SUGGESTED For example, nurses should check patients’ wrist bands and ask them verbally, when possible, to identify themselves, before administering a drug, said Dr. Paul Schyve, JCAHO’s senior vice president. Using a room number has been done, but is risky because a patient could be transferred without a nurse’s knowledge, Schyve said. Schyve said the study helps confirm “that there is a problem here and helps guide people to understand where some of those errors lie.” He discounted the study’s finding that error rates were similar at accredited hospitals because only 12 such facilities were included. Also, Schyve said, accredited hospitals tend to be larger and handle the sickest patients, thus may be more prone to errors. Unaccredited hospitals include small, rural facilities that can’t afford accrediting regulations, such as having quick access to an anesthesiologist for obstetric patients in case an emergency Caesarean section is needed, Schyve said. © 2002 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
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ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND
MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION
PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS
OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR
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YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.
Bush
vows 'to win the war'
