[Unqualified home care aides put the patient at risk. Better knowledge concerning drug administration must be...

During the last few years the home care services have had to face an increased responsibility for medical tasks. A study in the city of Malmö in 1993, repeated in 1998, shows that 95% of the health care assistants are engaged in the administration of medication. The studies demonstrate that health care assistants have inadequate knowledge not only about medicines and their administration but also about common diseases and their symptoms. Delegating the task of medication administration to non-nurse personnel within the social services therefore entails an increased risk for the patient.