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Medication incidents reported to an online incident reporting system

European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology volume 67, pages 527–532 (2011)Cite this article

Abstract

Aims

Approximately 20% of deaths from adverse events are related to medication incidents, costing the NHS an additional £500 million annually. Less than 5% of adverse events are reported. This study aims to assess the reporting rate of medication incidents in NHS facilities in the north east of Scotland, and to describe the types and outcomes of reported incidents among different services. Furthermore, we wished to quantify the proportion of reported incidents according to the reporters’ profession.

Methods

A retrospective description was made of medication incidents reported to an online reporting system (DATIX) over a 46-month-period (July 2005 to April 2009). Reports originated from acute and community hospitals, mental health, and primary care facilities.

Results

Over the study period there were 2,666 incidents reported with a mean monthly reporting rate of 78.2/month (SD±16.9). 6.1% of all incidents resulted in harm, with insulin being the most commonly implicated medication. Nearly three-quarters (74.2%, n=1,978) of total incidents originated from acute hospitals. Administration incidents were implicated in the majority of the reported medication incidents (59%), followed by prescribing (10.8%) and dispensing (9.9%), while the nondescript “other medication incidents” accounted for 20.3% of total incidents. The majority of reports were made by nursing and midwifery staff (80%), with medical and dental professionals reporting the lowest number of incidents (n=56, 2%).

Conclusions

The majority of medication incidents in this study were reported by nursing and midwifery staff, and were due to administration incidents. There is a clear need to elucidate the reasons for the limited contribution of the medical and dental professionals to reporting medication incidents.

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Author information

Affiliations

  1. The National Pharmacovigilance Centre, Saudi Food and Drug Authority, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Adel Alrwisan

  2. Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Aberdeen, UK

    Jennifer Ross

  3. Department of Geriatric and General Medicine, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland/Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Republic of Ireland

    David Williams

Authors
  1. Adel Alrwisan
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  2. Jennifer Ross
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  3. David Williams
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Adel Alrwisan.

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Alrwisan, A., Ross, J. & Williams, D. Medication incidents reported to an online incident reporting system. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 67, 527–532 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00228-010-0986-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00228-010-0986-z

Keywords

  • Medication incidents
  • Medication error
  • Medication incidents reporting
  • Medication errors reporting
  • Online incidents reporting system