RTP 1 (3167)

Please write a brief response to the following discussion by using one Nursing Peer-reviewed journal not older than 5 years. APA format required without cover page.

Medication error is among the many problems that exist in the area of nursing that would be appropriate for an evidence base practice project (Polit & Beck, 2018). As stated by Pop & Finocchi (2016), medication error is a mistake that happens in the medication use process. It is preventable and can lead to patient ‘s harm. The error can be fulfilled  in two ways. First by commission, where the intent of doing so is on purpose, and  by omission where one fails to follow protocols. Either ways can lead to severe patients outcomes. The article continues to mention that, medications error are blamed  to cause harm to 1.5 million patients annually in the united states. In an 18 month study that was done recently on 6 community hospitals in Massachusetts, 3.5 million patients were found to be affected by medication errors. There are many systems in place to help preventing medication errors. For example, observing the  rights of medication administration, barcoding, medication reconciliation, automated dispensing, standardized ordering and administration, training. All of these systems proved to be effective, But medication errors are still occurring.

Medication errors can ensue in the prescribing, transcribing, dispensing, and administrating steps ( Pop & Finocchi, 2016).  As we all know the nurses are always the ones to get blamed for those acts no matter where the errors take place. As nurses, it is very important to ensure the security of the patients when administering medications by following the protocols of your facility. Every day in our practice we encounter many questions and problems that need to be answered through clinical decision. We just have to do the best we can by using our knowledge and skills to help with this burden. The workload on nurses plays a significant part in causing some of the medication errors. My ideal question using the PICOT format, is how following the facility protocol versus reducing the workload on nurses help to prevent medication errors among patients in the future?