Factors associated with not reporting medication administration errors among critical care nurses in Kelantan, Malaysia: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND

Patient safety is crucial in healthcare, especially in regard to giving medication. Nurses have a big responsibility in this. The study looked at why critical care nurses in public tertiary hospitals in Kelantan might not report Medication Administration Errors (MAEs).

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted in public tertiary hospitals in Kelantan, Malaysia, between February and April 2023. Proportional random sampling was used to choose the critical care nurses. Those in administrative roles and those who were unavailable during the study were excluded. A standardized questionnaire was used to examine the variables associated with not reporting MAEs. A binary logistic regression analysis was applied to identify the significant factors associated.

RESULTS

A total of 424 critical care nurses participated in the study. The average duration of service was 16.83 ± 5.90 years. Nurses working in high patient-load units such as Emergency Departments and High Dependency Wards were more likely to refrain from reporting MAEs (AOR = 1.91; 95% CI: 1.05-3.46). Non-reporting was also more likely among nurses with no personal experience of MAEs (AOR = 2.10; 95% CI: 1.14-3.90) and those who had not observed errors committed by others (AOR = 1.98; 95% CI: 1.25-3.13).

CONCLUSION

This study shows that critical care nurses in units with higher nursing: patient ratio, do not experience or witness MAEs tend to avoid reporting the incident. To improve patient safety, it's essential to promote a reporting culture in these units. Government agencies should support anonymous incident reporting by nurses for better healthcare quality and safety.