errors in the nursing fields
5-One of the most commonly seen errors in the nursing fields
that has become a growing and significant problem, can be seen in patients
being incorrectly administered their medications. All too often, patients are
given the incorrect medications; whether this is due to the nurses who are
administering the medication, the doctors who write out the initial
prescription, or the pharmaceutical workers who fill the prescriptions in the
first place (Keers, Williams, Cooke & Ashcroft, 2013). The errors seen are
not entirely on the medical side of this, as it can be seen that patients can
also incorrectly dose themselves as well (Wright, 2013). Aside from being given
the incorrect dosage of medication, patients can often be given the incorrect
medication in general, or given their medications in either too short, or too long
of a time span (Wright, 2013).
Medical malpractice is an incredible cause of
concern, not only for the issues that can arise from a legal standpoint by
making errors in medication distribution, but from the severe risk of harm
coming to the patient, or even the death of the patient due to receiving a high
dosage of a medication that was incorrectly given (Makary & Daniel, 2016).
Medical malpractice is the third highest cause of death in the United States,
and in order to remedy this dire state of the medical field and for the public
to regain their trust in medical professionals, hospitals must take steps
towards correctly administering their medications (Makary & Daniel, 2016).
This is a role that must be worked at diligently, by not only the nurses at the
facility, but the doctors and pharmaceutical workers as well (Keers et al,
2013).
References
Keers, R. N., Williams, S. D., Cooke, J.,
& Ashcroft, D. M. (2013). Causes of medication administration errors in hospitals:
A systematic review of quantitative and qualitative evidence. Drug Safety, 36(11),
1045-1067. doi:10.1007/s40264-013-0090-2
Makary, M. A., & Daniel, M. (2016). Medical
error—the third leading cause of death in the US. BMJ, i2139.
doi:10.1136/bmj.i2139
Wright, K. (2013). The role of nurses in medicine
administration errors. Nursing Standard, 27(44),
35-40. doi:10.7748/ns2013.07.27.44.35.e7468
