Prescribing Errors

Question 1

What is a medication error

Answer 1

Any preventable event that may cause or lead to inappropriate medication use or patient harm, while medication is in the control of the health care professional, patient or consumer

Question 2

At what stage can a medication error occur

Answer 2

At any stage of the process involved in the delivery of medicines to a patient
Prescribing, dispensing, labelling, administration and even when the patient uses the medicines him/herself

Question 3

What are the four most common drug groups associated with preventable drug-releated hospital admission

Answer 3

Antiplatelets
Diuretics
NSAIDs
Anticoagulants

Question 4

When are healthcare professionals more likely to make errors

Answer 4

Inexperienced 
Inattentive
Rushed 
Distracted
Tired
Depressed

Question 5

Why do medication errors happen

Answer 5

Increase in numbers and variety of drugs
Patients have co-morbidities
Complexity of care process (multiple specialists, care settings, care delivery paths/journeys)
Need for high risk medications
Number of prescribers
OTC usage

Question 6

How does a prescribing error result

Answer 6

A clinically meaningful prescribing error occurs when, as a result of a prescribing decision or prescription writing process, there is an unintentional significant:

• Reduction in the probability of treatment being timely and effective or
• Increase in the risk of harm when compared with generally accepted practice

Question 7

What are the two processes that can be involved in a prescribing error

Answer 7

Prescribing decision

Prescription writing

Question 8

What is a prescribing fault

Answer 8

Failures in the process of deciding which drug to use and how

Question 9

What is a prescribing error

Answer 9

Failures in the prescription writing process that result in wrong instructions about one or more of the normal features of a prescription

Question 10

What type of prescription writing errors can occur

Answer 10

Wrong Patient
Abbreviation  
Incomplete Rx
Missing instructions 
Omission of signature 
Incorrect drug 
Illegible

Question 11

What type of prescription decision errors can occur

Answer 11

CI to medication
Duplication
Allergy
Drug-drug interaction

Question 12

What kind of prescription writing and decision errors can occur

Answer 12

Duration
Omission 
Timing
Frequency
Route
Dose
Formulation
No indication

Question 13

What is a mistake

Answer 13

Errors that arise from poor planning or inadequate knowledge are characterized

Question 14

What is a slip

Answer 14

Those that arise from imperfect execution of well-formulated plans when an erroneous act is committed

Question 15

What is a lapse

Answer 15

When a correct act is omitted

Question 16

What types of tasks are prone to error

Answer 16

Tasks that are unfamiliar to the operator or performed under pressure
Tasks that require the calculation of a dosage or dilution are especially susceptible to error

Question 17

In what departments of the hospital are medication error rates higher

Answer 17

Paediatric

ICU

Question 18

What are the 5 Rs

Answer 18

Right patient
Right drug
Right route
Right time
Right dose

Question 19

What types of errors can occur

Answer 19

Medication omitted
Incomplete prescription
Incorrect dose
Incorrect frequency (correct total daily dose, incorrect total daily dose)

Question 20

What type of incorrect doses can occur

Answer 20

Sub therapeutic

Super-therapeutic

Question 21

When can errors occur

Answer 21

Admission
Transcription of a new drug chart
Discharge
Remainder of inpatient stay
While decanting

Question 22

What us the 6th R

Answer 22

Right formulation

Question 23

What drug properties should be though of when prescribing

Answer 23

Mechanism of action
Pharmacokinetics
ADRs, Interactions
Protocol

Question 24

What should be considered before prescribing

Answer 24

The patient’s medication history

Other factors that might alter the benefits and risks of treatment