Medication errors in a pharmacy-coordinated drug administration program

The medication error rate in a pharmacy-coordinated drug administration program was determined. During a five-week study period, two pharmacy interns observed pharmacy technicians administering medications to patients on five nursing units. Observations were made from 0800 to 1200 and from 1700 to 2100, Monday through Friday. The ASHP Standard Definition of a Medication Error served as the basis for the classification of medication errors. A total of 2028 usable observations were made. The predominant type of error was wrong-time error. The overall medication error rate was 4.4%; excluding wrong-time errors yielded a medication error rate of 1.6%. Comparison of this medication error rate with those of other studies must be made cautiously, with consideration given to methods, study objectives, and definitions.