Reducing medication errors in practice: part 2

Abstract

In part 1 of this article, the authors looked at the enormous possibilities for medication errors to occur ( https://doi.org/10.12968/coan.2021.0033 ). In this second part, the authors consider what can be done to avoid medication errors happening in veterinary practice and how systems of work can be used to help. As identified in the Institute of Medicine's report To Err Is Human, most errors result from faulty systems and processes, not individuals. Before steps can be put in place to avoid medication errors, it must be acknowledged that we are all human and thus susceptible to cognitive biases and external influences that cause us to make mistakes. Hence, any interventions put in place should focus on adjusting systems of work to make it easier to do things right and more difficult to do things wrong.