All Posts Tagged With: "medication safety"
McKesson Medication Safety Advantage
Solving Patient Safety and Medication Safety Challenges with Software, Automation, Packaging, Distribution and Consulting Solutions
The McKesson Medication Safety Advantage is a comprehensive solution that helps ensure patient safety and medication safety at each stage of medication management—prescribing, transcribing, administering, dispensing and monitoring. As the only single-source provider that integrates software, automation, packaging, distribution and consulting solutions, we help health care organizations create a complete medication safety strategy.
In fact, many McKesson customers have created a strong culture of patient safety with process redesign and technology that enables better collaboration and communication among caregivers. These organizations have invested in patient safety technology—from bar code medication dispensing and medication administration systems to electronic prescribing, documentation and alerting solutions—and have enviable results.
Breadth and Depth
As you launch or broaden your patient safety and medication safety strategy, consider this: McKesson is the nation’s leading health care IT services company and provides the greatest depth and breadth of pharmaceuticals and technologies that make health care safer while reducing costs. We’ve been at the forefront of major breakthroughs in medication management and pioneered:
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St. Mary Mercy Livonia - Medication Safety
Safe medication practice is a priority at St. Mary Mercy Hospital. Our team of quality professionals has coordinated a consistent team approach to improving medication safety. The Medication Safety Committee coordinates this approach and actively encourages the reporting of all medication occurrences including those that are identified before potentially reaching our patients.
Our electronic medical record includes automatic alerts informing prescribers of patient allergies and adverse interactions.
The Medication Safety Committee recognizes that patients who actively participate in their healthcare are much less likely to be involved with an adverse medication event. We encourage patients to speak-up about concerns they have related to their hospital stay, especially if these concerns involve medications. An easy, effective way to ensure that you receive appropriate medication therapy is to maintain an accurate and complete list of medications you are currently taking. Present this list to your healthcare provider each and every time you seek care. This simple practice has been proven to significantly reduce medication related errors. We have developed a tri-fold Medication Card that can be kept in your wallet and used to record current medications. The cards are available free of charge by asking any member of the care team.
Learn more about St. Meary Mercy Livonia Hospital’s medication safety .
Alliance for Patient Medication Safety
The Alliance for Patient Medication Safety (APMS) will serve as the premier national patient-centric medication safety evaluation system in the country.
APMS strives to foster a culture of quality within the profession of pharmacy that promotes a continuous systems analysis to develop best practices that will reduce medication errors, improve medication use and enhance patient care. APMS is dedicated to encourage voluntary reporting of patient safety work product and perform analysis and aggregate information to improve quality of care provided by the pharmacy workforce. Through analysis of collected patient safety work product data the PSO will provide recommendations for prevention of reported medication errors in order to improve patient safety and the delivery of quality health care. Our PSO will encourage a culture of safety by providing recommendations on best practices and workflow processes designed to reduce medication errors, improve medication use and minimize patient risk.
Learn more about the Alliance for Patient Medication Safety at MedicationSafety.org .
Medication Safety: Moving From Illusion to Reality
The importance of medication safety has been recognized for many years, but only recently has it reemerged as a major public health issue based on numerous recent studies and high-profile safety events. Drug safety dates back to the 1950s, when in response to reports of chloramphenicol-associated aplastic anemia, the American Medical Association established an adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting system and the Food and Drug Administration began requiring pharmaceutical manufacturers to report ADRs. This effort to detect heretofore unknown, serious adverse effects of medications in postmarket use relied on voluntary reporting, which also became common practice in most health care organizations.
In the 1960s, Jick and colleagues began to focus on the safety of drugs in everyday practice, using a concurrent study approach instead of voluntary reporting. The authors found that 30% of the medical inpatients in their study experienced at least 1 ADR during their . . .
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Medication Safety Solutions Kit
Helping You Improve Medication Safety
The valuable tools included in the Medication Safety Solutions Kit were developed by the Regional Medication Safety Program for Hospitals (RMSPH), an innovative program launched by the Health Care Improvement Foundation, an affiliate of the Delaware Valley Healthcare Council (DVHC), along with ECRI Institute and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP).
The kit contains tools that are ideally suited for patient safety officers, risk managers, educational coordinators, quality improvement coordinators, performance improvement coordinators, CIOs, COOs, CEOs, vice presidents of patient care services, medical directors, pharmacy directors, and more.
Medication Safety Tools
The Medication Safety Solutions Kit includes:
* Medication Safety Binder—An extensive binder designed to help hospitals achieve the program’s 16 action goals. View the Table of Contents.
* Computerized Prescriber Order-Entry Systems—A Practical Guide—A special guide to help facilities plan for and acquire CPOE systems. View the Table of Contents.
* Safe Practices Campaign Poster Series—Posters promoting specific medication safety practices.
Other Medication Safety Educational Tools
The Regional Medication Safety Program for Hospitals also produced four patient safety DVD’s that can help you educate your staff about these issues:
* DVD: Medical Leaders in Patient Safety
* DVD: Patients Play a Vital Role in Patient Safety
* DVD: Patient Safety Requires a Team Effort
* DVD: Building System Safeguards for the Safe Use of High-Alert Medications
Learn more about this medication safety kit.
Pathways for Medication Safety
With the release of Pathways for Medication Safety®, hospitals now have access to a coordinated, extensive set of tools designed to reduce medication errors. Pathways is designed to help hospitals take a process-driven, system-based approach to address this critical issue.
The tools were developed by the American Hospital Association, the Health Research and Educational Trust and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices with support from The Commonwealth Fund.
Learn more about the Pathways for Medication Safety .
Medication Safety Tools for Consumers
Everyone in the health care system is working hard to ensure that medicine errors do not happen. As a consumer, you can play a key role in ensuring your health and safety by actively helping to manage your own medicines.
You can expect to be asked these questions each time you visit a healthcare provider: “Do you have your medication list with you today? Is it up to date?”
Keeping a list of medicines is a simple step you can take. Update the list every time you start or stop taking medications. Carry your list with you in your wallet or purse.
To help keep track of all your prescription and non-prescription drugs, the Redwood Area Hospital recommends you use My Medicine List, a free form to keep you organized.
Click on the links below to download a free copy of My Medicine List:
Read the rest of this article on medication safety tools.
SOS Rx: National medication safety group organized - Eureka Alert
SOS Rx: National medication safety group organized
Washington DC–The nation’s oldest consumer advocacy organization today announced the launch of SOS Rx, a national healthcare coalition promoting the safe use of medications. The coalition, run by the National Consumers League, includes participation by more than 60 consumer and patient safety organizations, physician, pharmacist, caregiver, and employer groups, and government. The coalition’s purpose is to make the outpatient use of medications safer, especially for senior citizens. Today the coalition launched its online home, www.sosrx.org, which will provide information for consumers about upcoming educational campaigns on topics ranging from the safe use of anticoagulants to the advantages of e-prescribing and the benefits of maintaining a personal medication record.
“There is a safety gap in our healthcare system and in useful information for the consumer who may be taking several medications,” said Linda Golodner, NCL president. “Every consumer needs to be aware of risks, including prescribing errors and dangerous interactions, and how a lack of doctor-patient communication can adversely impact health or the health of your family. SOS Rx provides an extraordinary opportunity for an alliance of concerned partners to search for answers and positively affect both consumers and the system as a whole.” Members of SOS Rx include consumer and patient safety organizations, accrediting bodies, groups representing physicians, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, caregivers, and employers, and the government. (See below for full list of current members.) Dozens of other organizations, foundations, and private companies participate in workshops and meetings.
“Consumers face enormous challenges when they enter the health care arena as either patients or caregivers,” said Lucian Leape, Harvard School of Public Health. “The members of SOS Rx are committed to arming consumers with the information they need to successfully navigate the system and maintain and improve their own health.”
“AHRQ is proud to be a member of SOS Rx, a unique coalition that is bringing everyone to the table — patients, advocates, providers, and industry — to produce real changes in the health care system,” said Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality director Carolyn M. Clancy, MD. “AHRQ’s commitment to patient safety research, especially in the area of safe medication use, is intended to provide the kinds of tools needed to help make those changes a reality.”
SOS Rx is initially funded by an unrestricted educational grant from founding sponsor Express Scripts. “Express Scripts’ mission is to make the use of prescription drugs safer, as well as affordable, so we’re very pleased to collaborate with the National Consumers League in launching SOS Rx with the support of such a wide range of organizations committed to greater safety,” said Barrett Toan, chief executive officer of Express Scripts.
Read the rest of this press release on the launch of this medication safety group.
SOS Rx: National Medication Safety Group Organized
Tuesday, April 6, 2004
Washington, DC—The nation’s oldest consumer advocacy organization today announced the launch of SOS Rx, a national healthcare coalition promoting the safe use of medications. The coalition, run by the National Consumers League, includes participation by more than 60 consumer and patient safety organizations, physician, pharmacist, caregiver, and employer groups, and government. The coalition’s purpose is to make the outpatient use of medications safer, especially for senior citizens. Today the coalition launched its online home, www.sosrx.org, which will provide information for consumers about upcoming educational campaigns on topics ranging from the safe use of anticoagulants to the advantages of e-prescribing and the benefits of maintaining a personal medication record.
“There is a safety gap in our healthcare system and in useful information for the consumer who may be taking several medications,” said Linda Golodner, NCL president. “Every consumer needs to be aware of risks, including prescribing errors and dangerous interactions, and how a lack of doctor-patient communication can adversely impact health or the health of your family. SOS Rx provides an extraordinary opportunity for an alliance of concerned partners to search for answers and positively affect both consumers and the system as a whole.”
Members of SOS Rx include consumer and patient safety organizations, accrediting bodies, groups representing physicians, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, caregivers, and employers, and the government. (See below for full list of current members.) Dozens of other organizations, foundations, and private companies participate in workshops and meetings.
“Consumers face enormous challenges when they enter the health care arena as either patients or caregivers,” said Lucian Leape, Ph.D., Harvard School of Public Health. “The members of SOS Rx are committed to arming consumers with the information they need to successfully navigate the system and maintain and improve their own health.”
Read the rest of this announcement of SOS Rx, a group focused on medication safety.
The California Board of Pharmacy Plays Key Role in Consumer Access and Medication Safety
Published: February 2007
As medications have become an a growing part of people’s daily health treatment, maintenance and promotion, pharmacists play an essential role in assuring people’s access to and safety with their medications. In turn, those organizations and entities that support, train, license, regulate and oversee pharmacists and state and federal legislation affecting them also play a foundational role in medication access and safety. The California Board of Pharmacy is one such entity. As a way of educating advocates, beneficiaries, and others about these foundational entities, and where to go for certain questions, complaints, assistance, this article provides an overview of the Board in a simple question and answer format with questions that were submitted to and answered by Board of Pharmacy staff. This Q&A clarifies the Board’s work and jurisdiction, and how it assists and can assist the work of advocates. Future newsletter editions will also explore the role and jurisdiction of other pharmacy foundational entities such as the California Pharmacists Association.
1) What is the California Board of Pharmacy, its mission and area of authority/regulation?
The Board was created over 100 years ago to protect and promote the health and safety of Californians by ensuring the highest quality of pharmacist’s care and the appropriate use of pharmaceuticals through education, communication, licensing, legislation, regulation and enforcement. Through venues such as public meetings, community health fairs, and its website (particularly its page on consumer services) the Board communicates with and educates the public on medication safety, complaint processes, patients’ bill of rights, consumer tips on lowering medication costs (including information on Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs Program), advice on buying foreign drugs, and the basics on Medicare Part D, to name a few areas.
Other entities, such as the California Pharmacists Association (CPhA) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), represent the interests of pharmacies and provide focused education to pharmacists in specific areas such as on the details of Medicare Part D. The Board focuses more on licensing pharmacists, technicians, and other professionals who dispense and/or sell pharmaceutical products obtained through prescriptions, and overseeing and enforcing laws pertaining to pharmacists and consumer safety. For example, with a staff of just over 50, the Board has inspectors statewide to check on pharmacists’ compliance with state and federal laws, such as making sure consumers receive a pharmacist consultation when bringing in a prescription from the doctor. (See last edition’s article on medication errors for more information on additional recommended actions for consumer medication safety.) The Board can also impose citations or fines on pharmacists, and even revoke licenses in instances of noncompliance, negligence and/or abuse.
As far as legislative authority, the Board does have a legislative committee that drafts, sponsors and advocates for legislation benefiting consumer protection and safety. For example, the Board recently sponsored a piece of legislation that by 2009 will establish a program to track drugs from the time they’re manufactured to the time they are dispensed. Currently at least 10 percent of the drugs sold internationally are not the drugs the manufacturers say they are. This electronic tracking system will reduce the instances of people taking intentionally mislabeled medications.
Learn more about how the California Board of Pharmacy plays a key role in consumer access and medication safety.