Reducing the number of missing doses with the aid of a computer system

Missing or extra medications in the unit dose drug distribution system have resulted in lost financial charges. At Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center, the reasons why drugs were returned or missing in the unit dose system were not properly explained nor properly recorded. Enhanced programs in the computerized pharmacy management system were developed to include a mechanism for recording reasons why doses were missing and a method of documenting extra doses dispensed to the patient, while capturing current costs for these drugs. The system permits simple data entry which allows uninterrupted processing. The reports generated by the system are used to inform physicians of dosage problems of patients and to act as an educational aid in correcting a source of medication errors. The computerized reporting system has helped to reduce the number of missing medication doses by 36.8% and to improve pharmacy inventory control.