Prospective risk analysis of the anti-infective medication administration process

A retrospective analysis of near-miss incidents at a tertiary care teaching hospital in Riyadh, KSA

Objective

This study seeks to establish an error-free reporting system that enhances patient safety and organisational culture. It investigates the prevalence of near-miss incident reporting systems by healthcare professionals in the General Surgery Department.

Methods

This retrospective observational study was conducted at a tertiary care teaching hospital in Riyadh, KSA. A sample of 253 medical records, ranging from January 2018 to December 2020, belonging to secondary patients was obtained using the near-miss Datix reporting and occurrence variance reporting system. The demographic variable data of registered patients were based on their age group (18–80 years), length of stay, date of admission, medication prescribed for more than four days, and whether they underwent surgical interventions. The cases were documented after the occurrence of a near-miss incident using a convenience sampling technique.

Results

In terms of prevalence in the near-miss main categories, medical errors were 248 (98.2%), workplace violations were two (0.80%), and others was one (0.40%). The number of incidence in the subcategories were: prescribing, 227 (89.7%); dispensing, 16 (6.30%) wrong dose/strength, 118 (46.6%), male, 123 (48.6%), and female, 130 (51.4%). The mean age and S.D. of patients was 1.94 ± 0.88 years and the demographic nationality as 1.16 ± 0.37. The one-sample t-test value for the main categories was −235 (p-value < 0.001).

Conclusion

Near-misses are recognised as essential targets for continuous quality improvement tools to mitigate preoperative incidents in hospitals. These findings can benefit the advancement of techniques for improving guidelines related to compliance and effective communication to improve the preoperative safety of patients.

Application of failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) to improve medication safety in the dispensing process - a study at a teaching hospital, Sri Lanka

Background

Failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) is a prospective, team based, structured process used to identify system failures of high risk processes before they occur. Medication dispensing is a risky process that should be analysed for its inherent risks using FMEA. The objective of this study was to identify possible failure modes, their effects, and causes in the dispensing process of a selected tertiary care hospital using FMEA.

Methods

Two independent teams (Team A and Team B) of pharmacists conducted the FMEA for two months in the Department of Pharmacy of a selected teaching hospital, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Each team had five meetings of two hours each, where the dispensing process and sub processes were mapped, and possible failure modes, their effects, and causes, were identified. A score for potential severity (S), frequency (F) and detectability (D) was assigned for each failure mode. Risk Priority Numbers (RPNs) were calculated (RPN=SxFxD), and identified failure modes were prioritised.

Results

Team A identified 48 failure modes while Team B identified 42. Among all 90 failure modes, 69 were common to both teams. Team A prioritised 36 failure modes, while Team B prioritised 30 failure modes for corrective action using the scores. Both teams identified overcrowded dispensing counters as a cause for 57 failure modes. Redesigning of dispensing tables, dispensing labels, the dispensing and medication re-packing processes, and establishing a patient counseling unit, were the major suggestions for correction.

Conclusion

FMEA was successfully used to identify and prioritise possible failure modes of the dispensing process through the active involvement of pharmacists.

Application of Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) to improve medication safety: a systematic review

Medication safety is a phenomenon of interest in most healthcare settings worldwide. Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) is a prospective method to identify failures. We systematically reviewed the application of FMEA in improving medication safety in the medication use process. Electronic databases were searched using keywords ((failure mode and effect analysis) AND (pharmacy OR hospital)). Articles that fulfilled prespecified inclusion criteria were selected and were then screened independently by two researchers. Studies fulfilling the inclusion criteria and cited in articles selected for the study were also included. Selected articles were then analysed according to specified objectives. Among 27€706 articles obtained initially, only 29 matched the inclusion criteria. After adding four cited articles, a total of 33 articles were analysed. FMEA was used to analyse both existing systems and new policies before implementing. All participants of FMEA reported that this process was an effective group activity to identify errors in the system, although time-consuming and subjective.

Preventive risk analysis in the maintenance of patency of the peripherally inserted central catheter

This theoretical and reflexive study analyzed the risks related to the maintenance of patency of the Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter with the use of saline solution in comparison with saline-filled syringes, through the application of the Healthcare Failure Mode and Effect Analysis - HFMEA. The process was mapped, detailing the failure modes of each step. For the calculation of the Risk Priority Number, the severity and probability of the failure modes were analyzed. This analysis gave rise to the severity and probability matrix. Finally, actions to reduce the failure modes in the maintenance of patency were proposed, considering the use of saline-filled syringes in comparison to the use of saline ampoules. It was verified that the use of saline ampoules is associated with a greater risk, since it requires four stages more than saline-filled syringe does not, increasing the risk of contamination and the level of three different risks, which would result in additional hospital costs. The use of the saline-filled syringe would avoid risks that could negatively affect the patient's health, the nursing professional and the health institution.

Evaluation of color-coded drug labeling to identify endovenous medicines

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the opinion of nursing professionals on the design, practicality of use and the usefulness of color-coded drug labeling in a pediatric intensive care unit.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study with 42 nursing professionals. A structured questionnaire was used based on a five-level Likert scale. To assess the proportions, a binomial test was used.

RESULTS

Concordance ratio >0.8 for all propositions related to design, practicality and most of the propositions related to error prevention.

CONCLUSION

According to the opinion of the nursing team, the implemented technology has an adequate design, as well as being practical and useful in the prevention of medication errors in the population at the ICU.

Analyse des modes de défaillance, de leurs effets et de leur criticité dans le circuit du médicament: revue de littérature

BACKGROUND

Failure mode, effects, and criticality analysis (FMECA) is a systematic and proactive risk analysis method to determine major failures in complex processes.

OBJECTIVE

To identify all articles involving the use of failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA), FMECA, or FMECA in health care within the medication use system.

DATA SOURCES STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION

The MEDLINE database was searched, for the period January 1990 to January 2017. The search included studies using the FMECA method, in part or in full, and dealing with one or several components of the medication use system. The reference lists of articles identified in the initial search were checked manually for additional pertinent references.

DATA SYNTHESIS

The researchers identified 171 articles, and retained 39 for analysis: 32 describing use of the FMEA or FMECA approach and 7 describing use of the FMECA in health care approach. They identified between 4 to 378 failure modes, according to the published studies. Among the 39 articles, 10 reported a pre- and post-implementation analysis of corrective measures. In 4 of those 10 articles, the analysis was conducted on a theoretical basis, that is, before the corrective measures were actually implemented. Using the articles retained for analysis, a summary table was developed with the following elements: publication year, main author, country, primary objective, secondary objectives, descriptions of both method and results, and comments. The summary table gave the opportunity to comment on the use of the FMECA-type analysis within the medication use system.

CONCLUSIONS

This literature review included 39 published articles using an FMEA, FMECA, or FMECA in health care approach within the medication use system. Most studies used either the FMEA or the FMECA approach, whereas the FMECA in health care approach was used only rarely. Only a minority of studies assessed the effects of corrective measures that were implemented. This overall approach allows for mapping of a care process, determination of failure modes, and prioritization of corrective measures. Its use for the assessment of the medication use system should be promoted.

Human error in daily intensive nursing care

OBJECTIVES

To identify the errors in daily intensive nursing care and analyze them according to the theory of human error.

METHOD

Quantitative, descriptive and exploratory study, undertaken at the Intensive Care Center of a hospital in the Brazilian Sentinel Hospital Network. The participants were 36 professionals from the nursing team. The data were collected through semistructured interviews, observation and lexical analysis in the software ALCESTE®.

RESULTS

Human error in nursing care can be related to the approach of the system, through active faults and latent conditions. The active faults are represented by the errors in medication administration and not raising the bedside rails. The latent conditions can be related to the communication difficulties in the multiprofessional team, lack of standards and institutional routines and absence of material resources.

CONCLUSION

The errors identified interfere in nursing care and the clients' recovery and can cause damage. Nevertheless, they are treated as common events inherent in daily practice. The need to acknowledge these events is emphasized, stimulating the safety culture at the institution.

Failure mode and effects analysis: a comparison of two common risk prioritisation methods

BACKGROUND

Failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) is a method of risk assessment increasingly used in healthcare over the past decade. The traditional method, however, can require substantial time and training resources. The goal of this study is to compare a simplified scoring method with the traditional scoring method to determine the degree of congruence in identifying high-risk failures.

METHODS

An FMEA of the operating room (OR) to intensive care unit (ICU) handoff was conducted. Failures were scored and ranked using both the traditional risk priority number (RPN) and criticality-based method, and a simplified method, which designates failures as 'high', 'medium' or 'low' risk. The degree of congruence was determined by first identifying those failures determined to be critical by the traditional method (RPN≥300), and then calculating the per cent congruence with those failures designated critical by the simplified methods (high risk).

RESULTS

In total, 79 process failures among 37 individual steps in the OR to ICU handoff process were identified. The traditional method yielded Criticality Indices (CIs) ranging from 18 to 72 and RPNs ranging from 80 to 504. The simplified method ranked 11 failures as 'low risk', 30 as medium risk and 22 as high risk. The traditional method yielded 24 failures with an RPN ≥300, of which 22 were identified as high risk by the simplified method (92% agreement). The top 20% of CI (≥60) included 12 failures, of which six were designated as high risk by the simplified method (50% agreement).

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that the simplified method of scoring and ranking failures identified by an FMEA can be a useful tool for healthcare organisations with limited access to FMEA expertise. However, the simplified method does not result in the same degree of discrimination in the ranking of failures offered by the traditional method.