Perianesthetic Dose Calculation Errors by Veterinary Students During a Live Animal Teaching Laboratory

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Medicine
• Anesthesiology
• Patient Safety

Background:

• Drug dose calculation is a fundamental skill in veterinary medicine.
• Calculation errors contribute to medication errors in veterinary anesthesia, posing patient risks.
• Previous studies have not investigated dose calculation errors in live clinical veterinary settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the incidence and types of drug dose calculation errors made by veterinary students during anesthetic planning.
• To identify specific drugs involved in calculation errors.
• To inform teaching strategies and error-mitigation techniques in veterinary anesthesia.

Main Methods:

• A prospective, observational study reviewed drug dose calculations from 53 third-year veterinary students for canine and feline spay/neuter anesthesia protocols.
• Analyzed 686 drug doses across 83 patients for calculation error incidence and type.
• Examined the potential impact of identified errors on patient dosing.

Main Results:

• Twelve dose calculation errors were found in nine anesthesia protocols (10.8% protocol error rate).
• The overall drug dose calculation error rate was 1.8% (12/686).
• Most errors (83.3%) would have resulted in overdoses, while 16.7% would have caused underdoses.

Conclusions:

• Drug dose calculation errors are prevalent among veterinary students during anesthetic planning.
• These errors pose a significant risk to patient safety in veterinary anesthesia.
• Enhanced training and strategies like independent double-checking are crucial for mitigating these errors.