According to the report, health IT was a factor that contributed to 889 medication-error events between Jan. 1, 2016, and June 3, 2016, at Pennsylvania-based health organizations.
The most frequently reported medication errors included:
• Dose omission
• Wrong dose
• Extra dose
The report shows that HIT-related errors occurred at every step of the medication use process. A majority of the errors affected the patient. Healthcare facilities reported the most commonly used systems involved were the computerized prescriber order entry and the pharmacy systems. High-alert medications, such as opioids, insulin and anticoagulants, were among the top drug categories involved in a majority of the events.
“We can examine HIT system failures for both human and system errors. Conducting a root-cause analysis when errors occur, developing a strong culture of safety in which workers feel empowered to report unsafe conditions and routine HIT system surveillance are just a few approaches to reducing HIT-related medication errors. We can also learn from systems that work well,” said Ellen Deutsch, MD, medical director for the authority.
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