Frequency of medication preparation and medication administration errors in a Swiss university Hospital. A prospective observational study

Background: Prospective observational studies from Swiss university hospitals, focusing on the frequency of medication preparation and medication administration errors using direct observation, are still missing. To close this gap, we have conducted a scientific evaluation of an electronically assisted medication preparation and administration process in a Swiss university hospital. Aim: The aim of this study was to measure the frequency of medication preparation and medication administration errors in two units in a Swiss university hospital before the implementation of an electronically assisted medication preparation and administration process. Method: To fulfil the study aims we used direct observation of medical staff during the medication process, the gold standard to detect medication errors. Furthermore, we measured the time that medical staff used in order to prepare and administer medications. Results: During the baseline measure, we observed a total of 14 571 medication doses. Errors in the medication preparation stage occurred between 1 % and 7.6 % depending on unit and type of error. Medication administration errors ranged between 21 % and 27 %. The most frequent administration errors were due to wrong administration time (84.1 %). Conclusions: This is the first study conducted in a Swiss university hospital using direct observation to detect medication preparation and medication administration errors. The current study offers important basic data to evaluate the effect of an electronically assisted medication preparation and administration process scientifically.