i have been working in health care for 20 years and i have seen a lot of medication error both in community and hospital setting.
Example of a prescription
A medical doctor uses a prescription to communication with the pharmacist. I should look at the prescription and tell the patient’s name, date of birth, address, what disease the doctor is treating based on the medication he or she ordered, what is the doctors name license number, working location.
A prescription is a recipe and it tells me a specific set of instruction for a specific patient. It must be clear because prescription errors can cost lives.
Scenario #1
The patient goes to the ER department of the hospital for a Urinary Tract Infection on a Sunday night. the doctor prescribes a medication for antibiotics, he is too tired so the writes a standard script for Septra DS take 1 tab BID For 5 days, then signs his name. The patient comes to the pharmacy 2 days later to fill the prescription. The pharmacist assess the prescription before dispensing it, she ask the patient’s name, date of birth, about any drug allergy.
The patient confirms their name, date of birth and stated that they have a sulfa allergy. Now the pharmacist will have to contact the doctor who wrote the prescription last Sunday to change the drug, he also never wrote his license number and the pharmacist or the patient does not know his correct name.
so the pharmacist calls the hospital ER department get their fax number, document the issues and send it via fax. Another doctor on duty will have to look for the patients file and prescribe an alternate antibiotic for the UTI.
Now the patient is 3 days behind on getting the treatment for a simple UTI.
Parts of a Prescription
- Patient’s Name on Health Card
- Date of Birth
- Health Card #
- Name of drug, strength, quantity, directions
- Doctors signature and license number
Solutions:
- Ask patients about their allergies
- Write your name and license number or get a stamp to save time
- Remember that a prescription is a recipe, make it clear and complete
- Medication error can cost lives and money
