Medication errors: ethical implications

Errors in health care are receiving much attention today, although committing such errors is not a new phenomenon. Nurses are taught procedures so that they are less likely to make mistakes. Yet nurses do make errors. Although many types of errors can and do occur in the health care setting, this article focuses on a discussion of medication errors and related ethical implications. Several ethical issues may arise as a result of medication errors: harm to patients, whether to disclose the error, erosion of trust, and impact on quality care. Nurses' appropriate ethical responses to medication errors need to be supported. Changing the health care system will help nurses to promote patient welfare, lessen the chance of harm, and reduce the likelihood of medication errors occurring.