Internship nursing students and faculty perception of medication errors: A descriptive qualitative study.

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Patient Safety
• Medication Administration

Background:

• Medication safety is a core patient safety principle.
• Nurses and nursing students are prone to medication errors.
• Understanding student perspectives on medication errors is vital.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore and describe medication errors.
• To investigate the perspective of Iranian internship nursing students and faculty.
• To identify factors contributing to medication errors in nursing education.

Main Methods:

• Descriptive qualitative study conducted in 2023.
• In-depth, semi-structured interviews with 17 nursing students and 5 faculty.
• Qualitative content analysis for data interpretation.

Main Results:

• Identified three main categories of medication errors: determinants, disclosure/concealment, and psychological consequences.
• Uncovered 12 subcategories related to medication errors.
• Highlighted inadequate medication knowledge and administration principle deviations as key error determinants.

Conclusions:

• Inadequate medication knowledge and administration errors by students endanger patient safety.
• Effective clinical supervision and experienced faculty training are essential.
• Promoting a safe, anonymous reporting system encourages error disclosure.