Clinical Issue Presentation: Medication Error in Anesthesia

Clinical Issue Presentation: Medication Error in Anesthesia

Medication errors in healthcare, especially in anesthesia, pertain to giving patients the wrong medication or dose, which might have unfavorable effects. Medication errors can happen anywhere, from prescription and preparation to administration. Using the case of Mr. H as a real-world example, this talk aims to investigate the clinical problem of drug errors in anesthesia. The talk will cover the history and importance of medication errors in healthcare settings, patient safety issues, related healthcare expenses, and a detailed case analysis to identify the underlying causes of the error. Together with outlining goals, objectives, and anticipated outcomes, the presentation will also use the body of existing literature to suggest evidence-based interventions and talk about using tools for quality improvement. In order to guarantee long-term improvements in medication safety, the presentation will also highlight the value of cooperation and teamwork in minimizing medication errors and provide a sustainability plan.

Background and Significance

Medication errors in healthcare settings refer to faults that occur during the prescription, preparation, delivery, and observation of pharmaceuticals. These mistakes can happen at several points throughout the medicine use process, resulting in unfavorable outcomes like patient injury, extended hospital stays, and higher medical expenses. Medication mistakes influence patients, healthcare practitioners, organizations, and healthcare systems (Aldossary et al., 2021). Medication errors can have serious repercussions; in fact, some studies include them as one of the world’s leading causes of mortality. While drug errors are not uncommon in many healthcare professions, they are especially risky in operating rooms (OTs) because of their high-stress and time-sensitive nature. As they prepare and deliver powerful anesthetic drugs, anesthesia clinicians are essential to the OT. The research shows that these medical professionals deal with pharmaceutical errors regularly, emphasizing how urgent it is to solve this problem (Aldossary et al., 2021). A multimodal approach is necessary to prevent pharmaceutical errors in anesthesia and healthcare settings. Enhancing communication between healthcare practitioners, implementing double-checking procedures, adopting better labeling standards, and minimizing error-causing variables, including hurry and heavy workloads, are examples of how to do this. Furthermore, it is critical to create a culture that supports error reporting without worrying about medicolegal fallout. Safer medical procedures and better patient outcomes can result from research and initiatives targeted at comprehending and reducing drug errors.

The expense of healthcare is a significant problem in the anesthesia profession, particularly when it comes to drug errors. Errors in medication administration can hurt patients, which has a domino effect on finances. These expenses cover various topics, such as prolonged hospital stays, legal responsibilities, and costs related to managing adverse events (Hakimoglu et al., 2015). The previously cited instance of Mr. H provides a stark example of the financial hardship that pharmaceutical errors in anesthesia can cause. In this instance, a critical adverse event was caused by the administration of an excessive amount of insulin during surgery. This miscalculation resulted in further expenses, such as more extended hospital stays, possible legal actions, and the requirement for extra medical interventions. That shows how prescription errors in anesthetic practice have real-world financial repercussions.

A diversified approach is necessary to address the costs of healthcare associated with drug errors in anesthesia. Error prevention is crucial and can be achieved by strictly double-checking medication dosages, better team communication, and increased education and awareness among anesthesiologists and other healthcare professionals (Hakimoglu et al., 2015). In addition to aiming for a safety culture, anesthesia providers need to be alert of the expenses linked to pharmaceutical errors. Ultimately, this will result in a more patient-safe and economically viable healthcare system by allowing healthcare facilities to limit the financial impact of unfavorable events, lower their legal responsibilities, and encourage practical resource usage. This emphasizes how important it is to have a planned, all-encompassing approach to deal with drug errors and related associated costs in anesthesia practice.