Abstract Background: High-alert medications (HAMs) are drugs that pose an elevated risk of serious harm to patients when administered improperly. Safe administration and regulation of high-risk medicines are considered a global priority in health care. Therefore, healthcare providers’ awareness of HAM is crucial for patient safety. Hence, this study aimed to assess healthcare professionals’ knowledge of HAM in a tertiary care hospital. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, the doctors and nurses from outpatient clinics, inpatient wards, intensive care units (ICUs), and emergency departments were recruited through convenience sampling. They were distributed a validated questionnaire to evaluate the awareness of HAM. Descriptive data were presented as frequencies and proportions. Results: Four hundred and twenty-nine healthcare professionals participated in this study. Of the respondents, 62.9% were aged 21–25 years, 85.5% were female, and 76.5% were nurses. Nearly 60% of the respondents provided correct responses regarding the administration of epinephrine, calcium gluconate and insulin; however, their knowledge of chemotherapeutic drug administration was relatively poor. Regarding HAM regulation, 50% of the respondents provided accurate responses on special HAM labeling, heparin and insulin storage, and pediatric measuring units. Participants with 1–5 years and > 10 years of clinical experience were more likely to correctly answer knowledge statements. Participants working in ICUs had significantly higher odds of responding correctly. Conclusion: Approximately 69.5% of healthcare professionals had good knowledge of the administration and regulation of HAMs. Thus, structured clinical exposure, supported by continuous education and technology-enabled safety measures, would improve the safe use of HAMs.
Prabath et al. (Tue,) studied this question.