Capella University NURS-FPX4020 Assessment 4 Quality Improvement Initiative Tool Kit Essay Example Approach

Capella University NURS-FPX4020 Assessment 4 Quality Improvement Initiative Tool Kit Essay Example Approach

Medication administration errors are undesirable in healthcare facilities. The safety improvement plan of interest will focus on introducing barcode medication administration technology and a staff education program. The focus is reducing medication administration errors’ prevalence, thus improving patient safety and ensuring quality patient outcomes.

This improvement plan kit is divided into four themes: Evidence-Based Medication Error Prevention Strategies, Utilization of Healthcare Technologies, Education and Training, Communication and collaboration. The tool kit provides and explains how various resources under these themes will help implement and sustain a safety improvement plan initiative in a medical unit in a healthcare facility.

Evidence-Based Medication Error Prevention Strategies Annotated Bibliography 

Manias, E., Kusljic, S., & Wu, A. (2020). Interventions to reduce medication errors in adult medical and surgical settings: a systematic review. Therapeutic Advances in Drug Safety, 11, 2042098620968309. https://doi.org/10.1177/2042098620968309

The article explores literature for interventions to reduce medication errors in healthcare facilities. The article supports the assertion that medication errors are the leading causes of death and harm globally, and the researchers compared the different activities in reducing medication errors with prescribing, administering, and supplying medication. The researchers analyzed results from six libraries and used statistical analysis to determine the success of these activities. The study results show that the most effective interventions include pharmacist-led reconciliations, prescriber education, medication reconciliation by trained mentors, and computerized physician order entry.

The study also showed that combined interventions such as CPOE and automated distribution systems have better outcomes than single technology interventions. Combining interventions is thus potentially effective, and thus, the result supports the safety improvement plan. The resource will help the nurses understand the importance and effectiveness of the chosen interventions in addressing medication errors and improving patient safety. The resource will also help the nurses select the best interventions to propose in addition to the selected safety improvement plan.

Salar, A., Kiani, F., & Rezaee, N. (2020). Preventing the medication errors in hospitals: A qualitative study. International Journal of Africa Nursing Sciences, 13, 100235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijans.2020.100235

The study was conducted in Iran to identify the best interventions in medication error prevention in a hospital ward. The study was conducted using 16 nurses and one physician selected using purposive sampling, and data were collected using semi-structured interviews. The study results were categorized into acting professionally and presenting technical strategies.

In the ‘acting professionally theme,’ themes that appeared include reading the drug label, continuous training on medication administration, preventing errors, and awareness of the legal implications. Under the theme of ‘presenting technical strategies,’ themes most prominent were distinguishing high-risk drugs, medication safe-keeping, and skilled nurses administering drugs. The resource will help the nurses understand their responsibility and collaborative efforts in preventing medication errors. 

It will also help identify areas in their practices that require improvement and help them address these areas. It will also help them appreciate and select technical interventions to help reduce medication administration errors. The resource will also help us understand the importance of mixing technical strategies and professionalism in minimizing medication errors. The resource is vital to safety improvement because change begins with an individual, and understanding the basic activities that prevent errors can help nurses advance to better patient outcomes.

Ciapponi, A., Nievas, S. E. F., Seijo, M., Rodríguez, M. B., Vietto, V., García-Perdomo, H. A., Virgilio, S., Fajreldines, A. V., Tost, J., Rose, C. J., & Garcia-Elorrio, E. (2021). Reducing medication errors for adults in hospital settings. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (11).