Medication mistakes are a dangerous and scary reality. Actively participating in your care can help you prevent them.

The bad news: Every year thousands of Americans die in U.S. hospitals due to medication errors, according to an Institute of Medicine report. One in 15 hospitalized children is harmed by medicine mix-ups, accidental overdoses, and bad drug reactions, according to a study by the Child Health Corporation of America.

The good news:
The medical community has been making strides to turn around these frightening statistics. They have implemented checklists and monitoring systems for hospital staffs and doctors to follow, and endorsed patientcentered medicine that empowers patients to be active participants in their care.

“There’s really no question that you can reduce the risk for errors if you make it a point to always know what medications you’re taking, in what amounts, and for what conditions,” says James Owen, Pharm.D., director of professional practice for the American Pharmacists Association in Washington, D.C. “People can’t afford not to be involved in their health care decisions and the implementation of those decisions, especially when it involves hospitalization.”

Health care professionals learn the “five rights” of safe medication use: the right patient, the right drug, the right time, the right dose, and the right route of administration.

However, system errors in hospitals—due to poor lighting, inadequate staffing, and incorrect information regarding a patient’s age, weight, allergies, diagnoses, and existing conditions—cause errors as much as people do.

The following steps, which go from hospital registration to discharge, can help reduce your risk for medication errors.

• Bring your medicines in their original bottles to registration, or bring a list of the drugs you take.

  Then double-check that they have been entered correctly on your chart. Be sure to mention any drug allergies or interactions at this time, as well.

  This step is crucial because your doctors will use this list to determine if any new medications they might prescribe could cause a dangerous or fatal interaction.

• Answer lifestyle questions honestly and accurately. If you smoke, say so and how much. Ditto if you use any illegal drugs or legal drugs illegally, or drink to excess.
• Double-check your medication’s name. Many drugs that sound alike and are spelled similarly are prescribed for very different conditions.

  For example: Allegra and Viagra, Humalog and Humulin, Avinza and Evista, and dozens of others.

• Make sure health care professionals check your wristband before giving you medication. Not doing so is one of the most common causes of medication errors in hospitals.
• Be extra careful during discharge from the hospital.

  “Many problems occur when patients are discharged from the hospital and are given new drugs without being told whether or not to take their old drugs,” Owen warns.

  A problem that often arises is when a newly prescribed drug and one a patient has been taking contain the same active ingredient, resulting in double dosing.

  To protect yourself, ask your doctor to make a list of the medications you should take when you get home, and the proper doses.

  “The bottom line is that being an active participant in your care is something you must do,” says Owen. “Not doing so is just too risky.”

Barbara Floria spoke with James Owen, Pharm.D., director of Professional Practice for the American Pharmacists Association in Washington, D.C.

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