title: Medication errors: an important component of nonadherence to medication in an outpatient population of lung transplant recipients.
abstract: Data about medication errors in outpatients are limited. Medication errors, defined as discordance between the most recent flow-sheet version, the patient's diary card or the contents of the pill container were assessed systematically after announcement in an outpatient setting of lung transplant recipients by a direct observation approach. A total of 101 patients took a median of 15 (13-17) different drugs and 31 (26-38) pills daily. A total of 2253 doses of drugs were further analyzed. A total of 152 errors were identified resulting in 303 incorrect doses. Lack of keeping a diary card was the only factor significantly associated with a higher rate of incorrect doses (regression coefficient 0.24, p = 0.02). Furthermore, a significant correlation of medication errors with clinical adverse events could be demonstrated. This study shows that medication errors are frequent in a population which has to comply with a complex drug regimen. The need for error control as a basic requirement for drug adherence must be accentuated. Mostly, medication errors seem to occur system-based. Therefore, redundant error control mechanisms and alertness of both the patient and the care-giver should be initiated systematically.
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Pulmonary Medicine, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Irani
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Seba
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Speich
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Boehler
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016040:Lung Transplantation / Q000276:immunology / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D019300:Medical Errors / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010045:Outpatients; D010352:Patient Dropouts / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents