COMPLIANCE WITH PRESCRIBED MEDICINES IN GENERAL MEDICAL AND SURGICAL WARDS

A total of 6833 doses of medication were prescribed to 753 hospital in patients in general wards over a 24-hour period (excluding medicines p rescribed on an as-required basis and medicines prescribed for the fir st time during the 24-hour period). Of these, 574 (8.4%) doses were om itted, representing at least one omitted dose in 242 (32.1%) patients. Many of the omitted doses were of symptomatic treatments and in 43% o f instances omission was deemed, retrospectively, to have been benefic ial. Some omissions, however, were of a potentially life-threatening n ature. The most common reasons for omission were that the patient refu sed the drug or that the nurse thought the drug unnecessary, the patie nt was on 'nil by mouth' or was too ill or unable to take the medicine . Thus, omission of prescribed medicines in general wards is common, o ften of little consequence or even beneficial, but of a potentially se rious nature.