Attitude of Physicians, Nurses and Paramedical Staff About the Most Common Medical Errors in Hospitals in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province

Abstract

Background and Aims Drug error is one of the unforgivable human errors. Challenges such as lack of national statistics and refuse of drug errors report are more important and its recognition is a must. The aim of this study was to evaluate nurses, pharmacologists, and doctors’ attitude toward medication errors, including factors that may contribute to errors, barriers to reporting them, and possible preventive measures. Methods In this descriptive analytic study in December 2017, a survey was conducted of 91 Nurses, pharmacologists, doctors working on medical wards at an educational hospital in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province in Iran. The study data were collected by a self-report questionnaire. The obtained data were analyzed in SPSS V. 16. Results The commonest identified causes of medication errors were doctors’ illegible handwriting, nurses’ tiredness, and distraction or interruption while administering the prescribed drugs. According to the study participants, the most important reasons for not reporting errors were the administration system and fear of being blamed. Conclusion The introduction of hospital policies and implementing structured protocols on drug administration may decrease medication errors. It is also helpful to start preventive strategies such as holding regular education sessions in pharmacology and numeracy.

Keywords

• drug errors
• pharmacologist
• doctor
• nurse