Raising awareness of medical miscalculation errors within the nursing population can be achieved through regular monitoring and reporting of these errors. The most common errors involved the wrong dose or … On Nov. 23, Oxford and AstraZeneca delivered positive news. Much was riding on the Oxford vaccine, a British-led endeavour also involving UK drugs firm AstraZeneca. When your doctor gives you a prescription, ask him or her to tell you the name of the drug, the correct dosage, and what the drug is used for. Researchers in Britain had been meaning to give volunteers the initial dose at full strength, but they made a miscalculation and accidentally gave it at … For example, hydrochlorothiazide is sometimes started at a dosage of 25 or 50 mg/d, even though 6.25 mg/d is often effective. Two full doses scored 62%. Much was riding on the Oxford vaccine, a British-led endeavour also involving UK drugs firm AstraZeneca. Suggestions for undergraduates include practical sessions and assessments in safe environments that can aid the hands-on learner, as well as assisting them to gain confidence as practitioners. The pharmacist overrode the computerized system alert, and failed to contact the ordering physician to verify the dosage per hospital policy for when a discrepancy occurs. But a nurse miscalculated the intravenous dose of the drug, and no doctor provided oversight, resulting in the overdose. al., 2001) found that 7% were due to "miscalculation of dosage or infusion rate." On Nov. 23, Oxford and AstraZeneca delivered positive news. After being evaluated by his physician, the patient received a handwritten prescription for Rythmol 150 mg, which he had been taking for the previous 3 years. The United States reports that of the 7,000 deaths attributed annually to medication errors, 17% of these are due to dosage miscalculation (Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Quality of Health Care in America 2000). Check medication doses with another nurse; Bayne, T & Bindler, R 1997, ‘Effectiveness of Medication Calculation Enhancement Methods with Nurses’. Dosage may be cautiously increased stepwise under the control of the supervising physician to a maximum 32 mg/day in divided doses (e.g., every 12 hours). Several studies have noted links between nurses who made medication errors and their ability to pass a medication calculation exam. /news/bad-math-the-impact-of-medication-dosage-miscalculations, Copyright Specialty Pharmacy Times 2006-2019, 2 Clarke Drive Suite 100 Cranbury, NJ 08512 P:609-716-7777 F:609-716-9038, The dosage was calculated based on weight in pounds, not kilograms. Dr McCarthy requested a correct dosage of 200mg and said it was "taken on trust" the drug was drawn correctly by two nurses. Medication errors may occur at any point in the health care system. In a recent study, [3] the four most common errors observed were wrong drug quantity (40%), wrong duration of therapy (21%), wrong dosing directions (19%), and wrong dosage formulation (11%). Unfortunately, it is all too common that a pharmacist fulfills a patient’s order with the wrong dosage. Similar rates have been reported in both the United Kingdom and the United States. When calculating doses, nurses should be encouraged to: Using calculators and conversion charts may be helpful, but should never be used as a substitute for taking into consideration the logical or expected answer. Pegfilgtastim administered instead of filgrastim. The United States reports that of the 7,000 deaths attributed annually to medication errors, 17% of these are due to dosage miscalculation (Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Quality of Health Care in America 2000). However, the nurse mistakenly gave 10 mg of Vecuronium, a high dosage for a drug that is given for muscle relaxation during surgery. “Each year millions of people are harmed and thousands die due to … Top Stories. The computer recommended that the dose be rounded to a single tablet (a 17 percent decrease from 193, well above the 5 percent threshold), and asked Lucca if she accepted this recommendation. Be sure you understand the directions for any medications you may be taking including the correct dosage, storage requirements, and any special instructions. The pharmacist overrode the computerized system alert, and failed to contact the ordering physician to verify the dosage per hospital policy for when a discrepancy occurs. 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