[Medication safety in German hospitals: An analysis of structured quality reports]

Medication safety represents an increasingly pertinent aspect of quality and risk management in hospitals. However, little is known about the relevance of specific methods in controlling medication safety with respect to medical care processes. The aim of this study, therefore, is to assess the implementation of medication safety measures and the significance of specific hospital characteristics.We analyzed data from 2018, comprising structured quality reports of 1987 sites that were the first to contain information on 13 medication safety tools and measures. Relative implementation rates were assessed both in general and for subgroups. The latter were formed based on site size, presence of specialized departments as well as university hospital affiliation. The relevance of corresponding differences between subgroups was examined using threshold analysis.Across all 13 medication safety measures, implementation rates varied highly (gapless medication safety after hospital release: 71.4%; SOP for good prescription practice: 23.5%). Rates also increased in relation to site size from 31.5% (<50 hospital beds) to 61.5% (>500 hospital beds). This pattern was especially prevalent for medication safety measures pertaining to electronics and IT. There were significant differences between eight measures based on the presence of specialized departments as well as university hospital affiliation. Two measures (medication safety training, description of optimal medication processes) did not vary with the hospital characteristics.Our results highlight the importance of standardized assessments of quality assurance data in hospital settings. The present data analysis enables the identification of those measures that have already been implemented. Implementation seems to be associated with hospital characteristics as well as regulatory guidelines. However, it is noteworthy that medication safety measures are not being implemented across the board. This might be explained by economic, social and technological barriers. These hurdles should be dealt with on a long-term basis and via adequate incentives.