Date of Award

5-2024

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Honors Thesis

Department

Pharmacy

First Advisor

Jane Gervasio

Second Advisor

Laura Sosinski

Abstract

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, medication errors were the leading cause of preventable harm in hospitals, negatively impacting approximately 1.5 million American patients each year.1 Since then, over thirty novel COVID-19 treatments have been authorized for patient use, introducing new challenges and exacerbating existing factors that contributed to medication errors.2 This research aims to identify and analyze medication error trends associated with COVID-19 related medications, vaccines, and treatment algorithms. To determine the most prominent medication errors occurring in the United States healthcare system during the beginning stages of the pandemic, literature reviews were conducted to identify the active treatments and vaccinations used for the SARS CoV2 virus and the known medication safety issues associated with these regimens were analyzed. A questionnaire was then distributed to members of the Institute for Safe Medication Practices to assess the most persistent errors found to be occurring in hospitals across the nation. Missed doses of treatments and failure to engage in barcode medication administration were found to be the most prevalent errors across participants. The most common causes of errors in the study emerged as miscommunication and issues related to staff training and education. The responses were categorized and analyzed to formulate an updated list of the most frequent medication errors at the time, which validated the original identified errors from the literature review and recognized new concerns. The objective of this research is to assess recurring medication errors in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and pinpoint additional errors unique to COVID-19 treatments. This research seeks to understand how the surge in contemporary COVID-19 treatment options impacts medication safety for patients receiving medical care in American hospitals. This data can aid in medication error prevention and elimination strategies outside the context of the pandemic, thus reducing patient mortality rates, length of hospital stays, and medical expenses.

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