Medication Errors

Table of Contents

Introduction3

Roles and Responsibilities of Registered Nurses, Medical Officers and Pharmacist4

The Common Causative Factors Including Environment, Individual, Team, Task and Systems9

Implementation of Appropriate Preventive Strategies11

References17

Medication Errors

Introduction

Medication errors are the most dangerous errors that are caused by careless behavior of doctors or the nurses at any health care center. These errors can occur during administrating, provision or even at prescribing medicines. These errors may lead to severe consequences and even in some cases these may lead the patients to death. Each year, this medication errors cause more deaths as compare to accidents. Medication errors can be categorized regarding to the phase of the medication utilization cycle during which they cause (prescribing, administration or dispensing) even if a current categorization of medication error into faults, blunders, or slips has been proposed (Gulley, 2007)

Roles and Responsibilities of Registered Nurses, Medical Officers and Pharmacist

Introduction

The roles and responsibilities of the RN, Doctor and Pharmacist in the medication administration cycle have similarities as well as a few differences.

Discussion

The role of doctors is to evaluate the disease of the patients and prescribe them the required medicines and drugs. They are further responsible to monitor the condition of the patient and recommend the nurses for the required apparatus and medicines to cure the patients' diseases They should be updated with all the latest drugs. Doctors utilize their medical skills and knowledge to the diagnosis and treatment, of illnesses (Gulley, 2007).

The pharmacists are responsible to read the prescription of the doctors, provide the patients with the prescribed drugs and supply the drugs to different health care centers and hospitals. Pharmacists also show their responsibilities in formulating new drugs. Pharmacists are dynamically concerned with patient care. As pharmacists are considered to be the medicines expert of the patient-care team, they make their efforts to make decisions related to patients' treatment. During performing their duties within the premises of hospital wards, pharmacists are responsible to visit their patients daily to analyze their medicines, evaluate their progress and ensure that they are aware of the proper way to take their medicines (Marcucci, 2007).

The role of registered nurses is drug administration and to provide the patients with the prescribed dose. They are further responsible to explain the recommendations to the patient and its family, so that they would be able to achieve the objectives of care. The next task is to prepare the patient for self-care. The nurses are accountable to educate health assessment to the patient, they have to perform a comprehensive supervision in the case of complications, and they should inform them by selecting appropriate ways to maintain proper bodily functions (Leonard, 2009).

Conclusion

Despite these differences and similarities in the roles and responsibilities of the RN, Doctor and Pharmacist, safe and secure medication practice is the main objective.

Process involved in approving a New Medication including the Role of the TGA and the PBS

Introduction

The journey travelled by a medicine is quite long as it starts from a laboratory and ends into someone's drug cabinet. There is a specific path for each drug because ...