Reducing automated dispensing cabinet overrides in the peri-anesthesia care unit: a quality improvement project.

Automated dispensing cabinets (ADC) can improve efficiency in drug administration but pose risks when pharmacist approval is improperly or frequently overridden. This article describes a children's hospital's intervention to decrease ADC overrides in the peri-anesthesia care unit, with a secondary focus on midazolam overrides. The overall override rate decreased from 17% to 4% by the end of the 18-month project period, with a decrease from 22% to 3% for midazolam. While not an aim of the project, time to pharmacist verification also decreased, thus potentially lessening the need for overrides.