A combined intervention to reduce interruptions during medication preparation and double-checking: a pilot-study evaluating the impact of staff training and safety vests.

Aim: The aim was to evaluate the impact of staff training and wearing safety vests as a combined intervention on interruptions during medication preparation and double-checking.

Background: Interruptions and errors during the medication process are common and an important issue for patient safety in the hospital setting.

Methods: We performed a pre- and post-intervention pilot-study using direct structured observation of 26 nurses preparing and double-checking 431 medication doses (225 pre-intervention and 206 post-intervention) for 36 patients (21 pre-intervention and 15 post-intervention).

Separate Medication Preparation Rooms Reduce Interruptions and Medication Errors in the Hospital Setting: A Prospective Observational Study.

Background: Interruptions and errors during the medication process are common, but published literature shows no evidence supporting whether separate medication rooms are an effective single intervention in reducing interruptions and errors during medication preparation in hospitals. We tested the hypothesis that the rate of interruptions and reported medication errors would decrease as a result of the introduction of separate medication rooms.

Aim: Our aim was to evaluate the effect of separate medication rooms on interruptions during medication preparation and on self-reported medication error rates.

Identifying medication error chains from critical incident reports: a new analytic approach.

Research into the distribution of medication errors usually focuses on isolated stages within the medication use process. Our study aimed to provide a novel process-oriented approach to medication incident analysis focusing on medication error chains. Our study was conducted across a 900-bed teaching hospital in Switzerland.