Compliance with intended use of Bar Code Medication Administration in acute and long-term care: an observational...

To identify the types and extent of workaround strategies with the use of Bar Code Medication Administration (BCMA) in acute care and long-term care settings.

Medication errors are the most commonly documented cause of adverse events in hospital settings. Scanning of bar codes to verify patient and medication information may reduce medication errors.

A prospective ethnographic study was conducted using targeted observation. Fifteen acute care and 13 long-term care nurses were directly observed during medication administration at small, medium, and large Veterans Administration hospitals to detect workaround strategies.

Noncompliance with recommended practices was observed in all settings and facilities. A larger proportion of acute care nurses than long-term care nurses scanned bar-coded wristbands to identify patients (53% vs. 8%, p = .016). A larger proportion of acute care nurses than long-term care nurses administered bar-coded medications immediately after scanning (93% vs. 23%, p < .001).

Workaround strategies were employed with BCMA that increased efficiency but created new potential paths to adverse events. There was a significant difference in the rate of use of workaround strategies between acute and long-term care.

The extent of workaround strategies varied by care setting and facility. BCMA should be tailored to the long-term care setting, including increasing the efficiency of use. Hospitals implementing bar coding should facilitate the intended use through equipment procurement, implementation, and quality improvement strategies.