Giving Medication Safely
8:15 am: Pharmacists are Filling Medication Orders
By the time the doctors see their second patient, the medication order Sarah Corathers, MD, placed for their first patient has been received in the pharmacy. The order prints out on a laser printer, alerting pharmacists Julie Piorkowski and Benedicte McClure that a new order has arrived. The order is typed and legible. No longer do the pharmacists spend time trying to decipher doctors' handwriting.
In the past, pharmacists at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center made 50 to 60 phone calls a day to clarify information they couldn't read or gather information that was missing from the order.
Tracking down the doctor might be difficult. All too often the name was illegible and the pager number was not noted on the order.
But the new computerized ordering system has built-in safeguards to assure that orders are complete and accurate. Orders can't be submitted unless they contain:
- The patient's name, weight and allergy information
- The doctor's name and pager number
- The name of the medicine
- The dose
- The method and frequency of giving the medicine
- The start and stop dates
"It's like you were there on rounds. You have a complete record," Piorkowski says.
The result? Medications are delivered sooner. Treatment begins sooner. Safety and efficiency have taken a great leap forward!
8:30 am: Nurses are Caring for Patients
While the doctors continue with rounds, Lori Prine, RN, is about to see one of her patients on A6-South — a child who has both cystic fibrosis and diabetes. She will need to draw blood and give several medications, including insulin and intravenous antibiotics.
As she gathers supplies before entering his room, Prine reaches for the computer.
She'll use it to check the antibiotic dose the doctor ordered before she starts the IV infusion. She'll also use it to document the medications she's administered and record her nursing assessments.
The information she needs to care for her patient is readily available, and she can do her charting right there, at the patient's bedside. Her notes won't sit in her pocket until she has time to transcribe them onto the patient's chart. They'll be immediately available to the clinical team, from any computer in the hospital.
