Bar-code verification of medication administration in a small hospital

Medication errors have been described as one of the most common, serious, and costly causes of adverse events in hospitalized patients in the United States.1,–4 A significant portion of the mistakes resulting in adverse drug events are known to occur as a result of human error at the point of drug administration.5,6 New technologies have been recommended as one means by which the accuracy of the error-prone medication administration process may be improved.7 Specifically, bar-code verification (BCV) of medication administration may have the potential to reduce errors.8 Two groups of researchers have described dramatic reductions in medication administration errors after the implementation of BCV.9,10 As a result, BCV is commonly viewed as an ideal means of ensuring the accuracy of administration. The published experience with BCV involved medium-sized and large hospitals and federal health systems. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of BCV on medication errors in a small private hospital.