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The PSNet Collection: All Content

The AHRQ PSNet Collection comprises an extensive selection of resources relevant to the patient safety community. These resources come in a variety of formats, including literature, research, tools, and Web sites. Resources are identified using the National Library of Medicine’s Medline database, various news and content aggregators, and the expertise of the AHRQ PSNet editorial and technical teams.

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Displaying 1 - 20 of 338 Results
WebM&M Case March 15, 2023

This case focuses on immediate-use medication compounding in the operating room and how the process creates situations in which medication errors can occur. The commentary discusses strategies for safe perioperative compounding and the role of standardized processes, such as checklists, to ensure medication safety.

WebM&M Case March 15, 2023

The cases described in this WebM&M reflect fragmented care with lapses in coordination and communication as well as failure to appropriately address medication discrepancies. These two cases involve duplicate therapy errors, which have the potential to cause serious adverse drug events.

Snoswell CL, De Guzman KR, Barras M. Intern Med J. 2023;53:95-103.
Community pharmacists play an important role in ensuring patient safety. This retrospective analysis of 18 outpatient pharmacy clinics evaluated pharmacist recommendations and impacts on medication-related safety. Researchers indicated that outpatient pharmacists were effective in resolving 82% of medication-related problems; 18% of these involved high-risk recommendations, such as medication interactions.
Atey TM, Peterson GM, Salahudeen MS, et al. Emerg Med J. 2023;40:120-127.
Pharmacists are increasingly involved in the emergency department (ED) medication process. This review summarizes the characteristics and impacts of interventions. The most common type of intervention is medication review/reconciliation and/or identification and resolution of medication errors. Interventions including pharmacist co-prescribing or co-charting in the ED resulted in the largest reduction in medication errors.
Holland R, Bond CM, Alldred DP, et al. BMJ. 2023;380:e071883.
Careful medication management in long-term care residents is associated with improved hospital readmission rates and reduced fall rates. In the UK, pharmacist independent prescribers (PIP) can initiate, change, or monitor medications, and this cluster randomized controlled trial evaluated the effect of PIPs on fall rates. After six months of PIP involvement, fall rates (the primary outcome) were not statistically different than the usual care group, although drug burden was reduced.
Darcis E, Germeys J, Stragier M, et al. J Oncol Pharm Pract. 2023;29:270-275.
Medication errors are common in patients using oral chemotherapy. In this study, a hospital pharmacist identified medication discrepancies in nearly 75% of patients starting oral chemotherapy, with an average of two discrepancies per patient. The pharmacist followed up with the patient’s oncologist via the electronic health record, and the oncologist could accept or reject the pharmacist’s recommendation. Patient outcomes were not evaluated in this study.
White A, Fulda KG, Blythe R, et al. Expert Opin Drug Saf. 2022;21:1357-1364.
Community-based pharmacists have a critical role in ensuring medication safety in community settings. In this narrative review, the authors explored how collaboration between community-based pharmacists and primary care providers can improve medication safety. The most common collaboration strategy was medication review. The authors identified barriers to collaboration from both the primary care provider and pharmacist perspectives.
Vargas V, Blakeslee WW, Banas CA, et al. PLoS ONE. 2023;18:e0279903.
Medication reconciliation can help identify medication discrepancies during transitions of care. This study examined the impact of a complete medication history database to support pharmacist-led medication reconciliation and identification of medication discrepancies during the admission process for patients at one psychiatric hospital. A retrospective analysis identified 82 medication errors; 90% of these errors – primarily dosage discrepancies and omissions – could have led to patient harm if not corrected through pharmacist intervention.
WebM&M Case February 1, 2023

This WebM&M highlights two cases of hospital-acquired diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) in patients with type 1 diabetes. The commentary discusses the role of the inpatient glycemic team to assist with diabetes management, the importance of medication reconciliation in the emergency department (ED) for high-risk patients on insulin, and strategies to empower patients and caregivers to speak up about medication safety.

Rodgers S, Taylor AC, Roberts SA, et al. PLoS Med. 2022;19:e1004133.
Previous research found that a pharmacist-led information technology intervention (PINCER) reduced dangerous prescribing (i.e., medication monitoring and drug-disease errors) among a subset of primary care practices in the United Kingdom (UK). This longitudinal analysis examined the impact of the PINCER intervention after implementation across a large proportion of general practices in one region in the UK. Researchers found the PINCER intervention decreased dangerous prescribing by 17% and 15% at 6-month and 12-month follow-ups, particularly among dangerous prescribing related to gastrointestinal bleeding.
Heesen M, Steuer C, Wiedemeier P, et al. J Patient Saf. 2022;18:e1226-e1230.
Anesthesia medications prepared in the operating room are vulnerable to errors at all stages of medication administration, including preparation and dilution. In this study, anesthesiologists were asked to prepare the mixture of three drugs used for spinal anesthesia for cesarean section. Results show deviation from the expected concentration and variability between providers. The authors recommend all medications be prepared in the hospital pharmacy or purchased pre-mixed from the manufacturer to prevent these errors. 
Sallevelt BTGM, Egberts TCG, Huibers CJA, et al. Drug Saf. 2022;45:1501-1516.
Adverse events, such as medication errors, are a major cause of hospital admissions. This retrospective study of a subset of OPERAM intervention patients who were readmitted with a potentially preventable drug-related admission (DRA) examined whether use of STOPP/START criteria during in-hospital medication review can identify medication errors prior to a potentially preventable DRA. Researchers found that medication errors identified at readmission could not be addressed by prior in-hospital medication reviews because the medication error occurred after the in-hospital review or because recommended medication regimen changes were not provided or not implemented.

ISMP Medication Safety Alert! Acute care edition. November 17, 2022;27(23).

Enteral feeding tube medication delivery presents safety challenges that can cause harm. This article highlights problems with feed tube medication administration. It shares improvement recommendations that include best practice adherence, standardization, monitoring, and patient engagement.
Johansen JS, Halvorsen KH, Svendsen K, et al. BMC Health Serv Res. 2022;22:1290.
Reducing unplanned hospital readmissions is a priority patient safety focus, and numerous interventions with hospital pharmacists have been developed. In this study, hospitalized adults aged 70 years and older were randomized to receive standard care or the IMMENSE intervention. The IMprove MEdicatioN Safety in the Elderly (IMMENSE) intervention is based on the integrated medicine management (IMM) model and consists of five steps, including medication reconciliation, patient counseling, and communication with the patient’s primary care provider. There was no significant difference in emergency department visits or readmissions between control and intervention within 12 months of the index hospital visit.
Iturgoyen Fuentes DP, Meneses Mangas C, Cuervas Mons Vendrell M. Eur J Hosp Pharm. 2022;Epub Sep 30.
Medication reconciliation at hospital admission has reduced medication errors, but less is known about the pediatric population, particularly which patients may benefit most from reconciliation. This retrospective study of pediatric patients who experienced at least one medication reconciliation error found children older than 5 years, taking 4 or more medications, or with neurological or onco-hematological conditions were at increased risk of errors. Prioritization of these populations may improve the effectiveness of medication reconciliation.
Laing L, Salema N-E, Jeffries M, et al. PLoS ONE. 2022;17:e0275633.
Previous research found that the pharmacist-led IT-based intervention to reduce clinically important medication errors (PINCER) can reduce prescription and medication monitoring errors. This qualitative study explored patients’ perceived acceptability of the PINCER intervention in primary care. Overall perceptions were positive, but participants noted that PINCER acceptability can be improved through enhanced patient-pharmacist relationships, consistent delivery of PINCER-related care, and synchronization of medication reviews with prescription renewals.
Beerlage-Davids CJ, Ponjee GHM, Vanhommerig JW, et al. Int J Clin Pharm. 2022;44:1434-1441.
Older adults taking multiple medications are at increased risk for adverse drug events following hospital discharge. In this study, patients were contacted two weeks after hospital discharge to evaluate adverse events, adverse drug events, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). There was a weak but significant correlation between patient-reported adverse events and HRQoL, but not patient-reported adverse drug events.  
Punj E, Collins A, Agravedi N, et al. Pharmacol Res Perspect. 2022;10:e01007.
Pharmacists play an important role in preventing medication errors. This systematic review identified 17 studies showing that pharmacy teams working in acute or emergency medicine departments can reduce medication errors through medication reconciliation.
Sacarny A, Safran E, Steffel M, et al. JAMA Health Forum. 2022;3:e223378.
Concurrent prescribing of opioids and benzodiazepines can put patients at increased risk of overdose. This randomized study found that pharmacist email alerts to clinicians caring for patients recently co-prescribed opioids and benzodiazepines did not reduce concurrent prescribing of these medications.

ISMP Medication Safety Alert! Acute care edition. October 6, 2022;27(20):1-5.

Patient resuscitation is a complex, distinct, team activity that can be prone to error. Pharmacists involved in codes reported concerns including errors with high-alert medications and communication gaps. Improvement recommendations focused on preparation for, actions during and post code phrases which included standardizing the practice of including pharmacists in codes, simulation, and regular debriefing.