Medication Error Reporting Rate and its Barriers and Facilitators among Nurses

Area of Science:

• Healthcare quality and patient safety
• Nursing practice and medication management
• Health systems research

Background:

• Medication errors are a leading cause of patient harm and mortality.
• Effective prevention relies on robust medication error reporting systems.
• Understanding reporting dynamics is crucial for improving patient safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the rate of medication error reporting among nurses.
• To identify barriers hindering medication error reporting.
• To explore factors facilitating medication error reporting in teaching hospitals.

Main Methods:

• A descriptive study conducted in 2011 involving 733 nurses.
• Data collected via a questionnaire based on the Haddon matrix.
• Analysis of reporting rates, barriers, and facilitators using descriptive statistics.

Main Results:

• Nurses reported significantly fewer medication errors than they made.
• Major barriers included fear of blame, consequences, and punishment.
• Specific facilitating factors for reporting were also identified.

Conclusions:

• Actual medication error rates far exceed reported rates.
• Training on reporting barriers and facilitators is recommended for nurses and administrators.
• Enhancing reporting systems is essential for improving patient safety.