EVALUATION OF NURSES ERRORS ASSOCIATED IN THE PREPARATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF MEDICATION IN A PEDIATRIC INTENSIVE-CARE UNIT

The objectives of this study were to determine the frequency and the t ypes of errors which occur regarding the preparation and the administr ation of medication and to identify the main causes of these errors in a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) at the University Hospital in Lausanne (Switzerland). In this prospective study, based on the observ ation of nurses' activities, the data were collected over a period of 10 weeks. The error classification was based on the American Society o f Hospital Pharmacy (ASHP) definitions. The frequency of errors was ca lculated as the sum of all noted errors divided by the total administe red drugs, plus all given doses plus all omitted doses gives the 'tota l opportunity for errors'. This total was 275 and the total frequency of errors was 26.9%. The most frequent errors were wrong-time errors ( 32.4%), wrong-administration-technique errors (32.4%) and preparation errors (23.0%). In relation with other studies conducted under compara ble conditions, a lesser number of omissions and wrong-time errors wer e observed. On the contrary, administration-technique and dose-prepara tion errors were more frequent at our hospital. A program of systemati c assistance and survey by professional pharmacists could improve the quality of the preparation and administration of medication in the PIC U.