Unveiling the Complexity of Medication Errors: A Nursing Perspective on Contributing Factors to Medication Errors

Abstract

Context: Medication errors have long been associated with poor medical care quality, lengthy hospital stays, substantially increased medical costs, and a decline in patient confidence in the hospital's ability to provide quality care. Additionally, it is imperative to acknowledge that nurses serve as the final defense in mitigating medication errors and ensuring patient safety.

Aim: To identify the factors contributing to King Abdullah Medical City's medication errors.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in King Abdullah Medical City from January 2023 till March 2023. A total number of 262 nurses were included in this study. Data were collected through an online questionnaire of 28 questions, including nurses' demographics, work-related characteristics, and factors contributing to medication errors from nursing perspectives.

Results: It was observed that overworked or exhausted healthcare professionals had the highest responses, with a mean score of 4.46±0.78, followed by insufficient staffing, with a mean score of 4.43±0.88. Regarding patient-related factors, the complexity of the clinical case, including multiple health conditions, polypharmacy, and high-risk medications, had the highest responses with a mean score of 4.20±0.83. Concerning work environment contributing factors for medication errors, it was found that the highest responses were to workload and time pressure factors, with a mean score of 4.50±0.71.

Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, the main contributory factors to medication errors were overworked or exhausted healthcare professionals, insufficient staffing, violation of the eight rights of medication administration by nurses, inadequate drug knowledge and experience, nurses' failure to record the administered drug on the patient's record, and inadequate communication between healthcare providers and patients.