@article{9429, author = {S. N. Hilmer and C. Rangiah and B. Bajorek V and G. M. Shenfield}, title = {Failure to weigh patients in hospital: a medication safety risk.}, abstract = {

Often patients are not weighed in hospital. Failure to weigh patients prescribed renally excreted drugs may correlate to adverse drug events. We carried out a cross-sectional study of patients prescribed common renally excreted drugs (heparin, enoxaparin and gentamicin), admitted to two wards at Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney over 3 months. Of all patients surveyed, 28% (22/78) in the orthopaedic ward and 22% (27/124) in the medical ward were weighed. Among those prescribed therapeutic doses of the study drugs, 25% (3/12) in the orthopaedic ward and 27% (7/26) in the medical ward were weighed. Patients prescribed therapeutic anticoagulation who were not weighed experienced more haemorrhagic complications than patients who were weighed (P = 0.03). Patients prescribed renally excreted drugs in hospital are frequently not weighed. This is associated with reduced medication safety.

}, year = {2007}, journal = {Intern Med J}, volume = {37}, pages = {647-50}, month = {09/2007}, issn = {1445-5994}, language = {eng}, }