Topic Medication Safety Improvement ---medication error reduction - Essay Example

Medication Safety Improvement ---medication error reduction In any healthcare practice, the main aim of the practitioners is to save life and reduce morbidity and mortality to their most minimal levels possible. One way of achieving this is engaging in competent and satisfactory patient safety practices and one good example of this is medication error reduction or medication safety improvement. In this practice, the safety committee and the quality manager (QM) of any healthcare institution focus on becoming a source of medical safety or error reduction expertise.

An example of patient practice that relates to medication error reduction is preventing microbial contamination. Outbreaks involving patient-to-patient transmission of blood-borne viruses and other types of microbial pathogens continue to occur during routine healthcare procedures in different healthcare settings and this is not acceptable. This is mainly because these infections occur as a result of unsafe infusion, injection and unacceptable medical vial practices. According to Stucki et al (2009), such outbreaks can be prevented through the utilization of proper aseptic technique together with practices that help to attain basic infection prevention.

These techniques include proper administration of injections, proper handling of parenteral medications, and proper procurement and sampling of blood. Breaches in safe patient injection and other infection prevention procedures have resulted to devastating and unacceptable effects and events for them. Thompson et al (2009) observe that over the past 10 years, over 35 viral hepatitis outbreaks have occurred in the Unites States leading to the exposure of over 100,000 people to viral hepatitis.

Comstock et al (2004) also point out that such outbreaks have also resulted to the transmission of hepatitis B or C virus (HBV or HCV) to over 500 patients. Recently, I conducted an interview with the QM of a certain hospital and managed to get information on how their hospital would handle an incident of microbial contamination. One thing the hospital could do is to mandate its entire staff to strictly follow the appropriate practices for basic injection safety when administering or preparing parenteral medications to many patients.

At all times, and especially when such an outbreak is resulting from microbial contamination has occurred, the hospital staff should ensure that there are no incidences of reuse of syringes between patients during the administration of parenteral medications. Based on the recommendations from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2003) the QM could give strict orders to all individuals involved in preparing or administering medications to patients that intravenous (IV) bags or medication vials should not be accessed with needles or syringes that have already been used.

The QM commended that these could greatly help in eliminating contamination of intravenous (IV) bags or medication vials and consequently, minimize the outbreak of infections caused by blood-borne viruses and other types of microbial pathogens. Physicians and nurses could also be advised to change their gloves after attending to one patient and the used one should be disinfected immediately. When they are not using gloves, they should practice high standards of hand hygiene. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2009) also advices that physician and nurses should be discouraged from spiking a bottle, vial or bag with a 1-way device and leaving it there.

This is because it increases the risk of microbial contamination. Recommendations and conclusionOnce there is a microbial contamination, the replication of pathogens can begin in the next 1-4 hours. This means that there will be a high rate and cost of medical disposal at such times. In order to deal with this, ambulatory surgery centers, operation rooms and all other medical settings that should prepare and utilize CPCs within 1 hour after preparation. This will allow the preparation and use of sterile products.

Users of multi-dose vials should not just focus primarily on the expiry dates of these products. Instead, they should make a strict adherence to aseptic technique whenever they access the vial. They should also ensure safe and clean storage for the same. Generally, the standards of hygiene should improve and the use of syringes and other medical apparatus between two or more patients should be avoided. References Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2003). “Guideline for environmental infection control in health care facilities: recommendations of the CDC and the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee.

” Morb Mortal Recomm Rep. (52) pp 144.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2009). Prevention of patient-to-patient transmission of bloodborne pathogens in long-term care settings. Online: http://wwwn.cdc.gov/pubs/hepa.aspx. Viewed on 6th September, 2011. Comstock, R. Mallonee, S. Fox, J. Moolenaar, R.Vogt, T. Perz, J. et al. (2004). “A large nosocomial outbreak of hepatitis C and hepatitis B among patients receiving pain remediation treatments.” Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. (25) pp 576-583.Stucki, C. Sautter, A. Favet, J. and Bonnabry, P. (2009). “Microbial contamination of syringes during preparation: the direct influence of environmental cleanliness and risk manipulations on end-product quality.

” Am J Health Syst Pharm. (66) pp 2032-2036.Thompson, N. Perz, J. Moorman, A. and Holmberg, S.(2009). “Nonhospital health care-associated hepatitis B and C virus transmission: United States, 1998-2008.” Ann Intern Med. (150) pp 33-39