This newsletter is
sponsored by Kohl's.

A Prescription for Safety

Your safety while in our care is of utmost importance to us. That's why, among other precautionary measures, we've developed stringent protocols to reduce the possibility of patient medication errors.

1. The right patient
2. The right drug
3. The right dose
4. The right time and frequency of administration
5. The right route of administration (orally, intravenously, etc.)

A bar-coding system helps minimize human error. Patients are given a bar-coded identification wristband that can be scanned and matched with information about the patient and his or her prescribed drugs. Drugs are also bar-coded and compared with patient information before medication is administered.

More Avenues for Safety
In addition to the "five rights," the hospital has adopted a number of procedures designed to cut down on medication errors:

Access to drug information. Accurate and up-to-date drug information, including purpose, contraindications and potential side effects, is available to all health professionals involved in prescribing and administering medications at the hospital.

Careful labeling and storage. Drugs are clearly labeled, catalogued and stored to help avoid mix-ups of drugs with similar and commonly confused names. We take additional precautions to identify drugs that can cause harm if mistakenly prescribed, administered or given in the wrong dosage.

Quality control and risk management processes. Effective strategies help avoid medication errors and, should an error occur, identify and correct the problem quickly.

Computerized physician order entry (CPOE). With CPOE, the physician enters medication orders directly into a computer system, rather than giving handwritten or verbal orders. This system helps prevent errors that can result from misunderstandings or illegible handwriting.

Finally, it is our policy to fully inform patients of the medications they will be given. We encourage you to ask questions. As a vital partner in your care, you can help protect yourself against medication errors (download accompanying PDF).