Analyzing a Healthcare Problem or Issue (Research Paper Sample)

Analyzing a Healthcare Problem or Issue
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Analyzing a Healthcare Problem or Issue
Medication errors are a contemporary and global health issue. Medication can be errors of omission, errors of commission leading to minor effects or sentinel events. Medication errors are the leading medical errors. They occur between diagnosis, ordering, dispensing, and administering the drugs. Medication errors cause harm from drug reactions, immunologic reactions and physiologic damage. Medication errors are preventable through interprofessional collaboration and favorable organizational policies. Interventions are thus integral and should thus encompass all these processes. This essay analyzes medication errors, their causes, and possible solutions ad their ethical implications.
Medication errors
The Food and Drugs Act Agency receives more than 100,000 medication errors reports, with more than 4000,000 medication error-related injuries yearly. Medication errors cost the US over $40 billion yearly, and most of these costs are preventable (IHI, 2017). They cause more than 250,000 deaths annually, making them a leading cause of death (FDA, 2019). Nurses, doctors, pharmacists, and nutritionists are all prone to medication errors
According to Schmdt, Tylor, and Person (2017), all patients are exposed to medication errors; hence effective prevention strategies are integral. The most affected population by patient falls are mental health, emergency/trauma, and severely ill patients. Their vulnerability is due to the inability to follow instructions or question medications or any interventions during their care. Patients give informed consent before medication administration, which may not be possible with the confusion among critically ill patients. However, all patients require protection from medication errors because medical errors can be fatal to anyone, despite their health status before the infusion of the drugs.
Causes of medication errors
The leading cause of medication errors is poor communication. Poor communication can occur at any moment between transcription, procurement, and dispensing (Bergener, 2020). Causes include illegible handwriting, typing errors, unclear or inaudible verbal orders. Nursing handovers at the nursing desk (handing over without the patient) and poor interprofessional collaboration add to the list of medication errors. Another major cause of medication errors is incorrect diagnosis. Incorrect diagnosis and patient misidentification are leading causes of incorrect medication administration (Svitlica et al., 2017). These two are common due to the hasty nature of the medical field. Healthcare workers’ (especially nurses) shortage also causes medication errors because healthcare providers are always in a hurry to provide care to many patients, thus committing these errors. In addition, LASA (look-like sound-alike) drugs are also a leading cause of medication errors, and production factories should provide adequate means to differentiate such drugs (IHI, 2017).
Possible Solutions to Patient Falls
There are several ways to prevent medication errors between diagnosing, ordering, dispensing, and administering the drugs. Medical staff education and sensitization on medication errors are possible solutions. Educated staff often make better and informed decisions in preventing medication errors. IHI (2017) believes packaging improvements through favourable organizational policies are integral. Some of these strategies are handing over with patients (at the bedside) instead of handing over at the nursing station, clear packing and storage of LASA drugs, and using companions or drug pumps for safe drug administration. Another possible solution is patient medication safety training. According to Schmdt, Tylor, and Pearson (2017), risk assessment tools help prevent more than twenty percent of medication errors. Patient medication safety training ensures they are actively involved in safe medication administration. Informed patients can also help avoid medication errors by questioning inconsistencies and following the given instructions adequately.
Solution- Staff Education to Prevent Medication Errors
As mentioned above, staff education and sensitization n medication errors are integral in preventing medication errors. Most states require at least 2 hours of continuing education on medication errors training to equip healthcare providers with adequate knowledge to prevent medication errors in the dynamic healthcare field. Staff training sensitizes the staff on the implications of medication errors. According to Di Simone et al. (2018), training and workshops provide a good platform for reminding staff of the guidelines and policies regarding medication errors. According to Institute for Healthcare Improvement (2017), common organizational strategies include avoiding abbreviations, separating LASA drugs, legible handwriting, clear handover guidelines, and medication error reporting. Staff training also creates a culture of safety within the organization. Trained staff also teach patients adequately even at home.
Medication errors are not confined to the wards or hospital environments, and they can happen at home after discharge; thus, patient education is integral. Staff training determines the quality of patient education, and quality discharge education is integral. Healthcare institutions should embrace staff training and development programs that suit the strategies integral to impacting the right knowledge and skills in medication errors prevention.
Ethical Implications
Healthcare interventions are highly dependent on ethical acceptability. Staff education promotes autonomy through informed decision-making. Patients and staff who are informed would hardly make mistakes. Recent studies show that staff training reduces patient deaths by over 15% and improves the overall clinical performance by over 30%, promoting beneficence (Di Simone et al., 2018). In addition, staff training encourages medication error reporting, which informs the institutions’ organization and prevention strategies. Education also enables healthcare providers and patients to make the best decisions regarding care hence the best patient outcome promoting beneficence and nonmaleficence. All patients and their relatives should receive education on mediation and medication safety to ensure justice. All patients are entitled to patient safety, and staff education on medication errors ensures that patients are adequately managed.
Implementation of the Solution
Staff training requires massive input from healthcare leaders. A clear and comprehensive program entailing the different causes, risk factors, consequences, and organizational and government policies on medication errors prevention is essential. The engagement of reputable healthcare trainers such as accredited firms and advanced practice registered nurses is integral. As per Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) guidelines, staff training on medication errors could be integrated with other patient safety training (Di Simone et al., 2018).
A keen analysis of patients and staff needs is integral in