Alsaleh Fatemah M, Alsaeed Sara, Alsairafi Zahra K, Almandil Noor B, Naser Abdallah Y, Bayoud Tania
Department of Pharmacy Practice, Faculty of Pharmacy, Kuwait University, Hawalli, Kuwait.
Department of Clinical Pharmacy Research, Institute for Research and Medical Consultations (IRMC), Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
Front Med (Lausanne). 2021 Dec 20;8:784315. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2021.784315. eCollection 2021.
Medication errors (MEs) are the most common cause of adverse drug events (ADEs) and one of the most encountered patient safety issues in clinical settings. This study aimed to determine the types of MEs in secondary care hospitals in Kuwait and identify their causes. Also, it sought to determine the existing system of error reporting in Kuwait and identify reporting barriers from the perspectives of healthcare professionals (HCPs). A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using a pre-tested self-administered questionnaire. Full-time physicians, pharmacists, and nurses (aged 21 years and older) working in secondary care governmental hospitals in Kuwait were considered eligible to participate in the study. Descriptive statistics and the Statistical Package for Social Science Software (SPSS), version 27 were used to analyze the data. A total of 215 HCPs were approached and asked to take part in the study, of which 208 agreed, giving a response rate of 96.7%. Most HCPs ( = 129, 62.0%) reported that the most common type of ME is "prescribing error," followed by "compliance error" ( = 83; 39.9%). Most HCPs thought that a high workload and lack of enough breaks ( = 128; 61.5%) were the most common causes of MEs, followed by miscommunication, either among medical staff or between staff and patients, which scored ( = 89; 42.8%) and ( = 82; 39.4%), respectively. In the past 12 months, 77.4% ( = 161) of HCPs reported that they did not fill out any ME incident reports. The lack of feedback ( = 65; 31.3%), as well as the length and complexity of the existing incident reporting forms ( = 63; 30.3%), were the major barriers against reporting any identified MEs. MEs are common in secondary care hospitals in Kuwait and can be found at many stages of practice. HCPs suggested many strategies to help reduce MEs, including proper communication between HCPs; double-checking every step of the process before administering medications to patients; providing training to keep HCPs up to date on any new treatment guidelines, and computerizing the health system.
用药错误（MEs）是药物不良事件（ADEs）最常见的原因，也是临床环境中最常遇到的患者安全问题之一。本研究旨在确定科威特二级护理医院中用药错误的类型并找出其原因。此外，研究还试图确定科威特现有的错误报告系统，并从医疗保健专业人员（HCPs）的角度找出报告障碍。采用预先测试的自填式问卷进行了一项描述性横断面研究。在科威特二级护理政府医院工作的全职医生、药剂师和护士（年龄在21岁及以上）被认为有资格参与该研究。使用描述性统计方法和社会科学统计软件包（SPSS）27版对数据进行分析。共邀请了215名医疗保健专业人员参与研究，其中208人同意，回复率为96.7%。大多数医疗保健专业人员（n = 129，62.0%）报告称，最常见的用药错误类型是“处方错误”，其次是“依从性错误”（n = 83；39.9%）。大多数医疗保健专业人员认为，工作量大且休息不足（n = 128，61.5%）是用药错误最常见的原因，其次是医务人员之间或工作人员与患者之间的沟通不畅，分别占比（n = 89；42.8%）和（n = 82；39.4%）。在过去12个月中，77.4%（n = 161）的医疗保健专业人员报告称他们没有填写任何用药错误事件报告。缺乏反馈（n = 65；31.3%）以及现有事件报告表格的长度和复杂性（n = 63；30.3%）是报告任何已识别用药错误的主要障碍。用药错误在科威特的二级护理医院中很常见，并且在许多实践阶段都可能出现。医疗保健专业人员提出了许多有助于减少用药错误的策略，包括医疗保健专业人员之间的适当沟通；在给患者用药前对过程的每一步进行双重检查；提供培训以使医疗保健专业人员了解任何新的治疗指南，以及将卫生系统计算机化。
