Argo et al made a number of recommendations for reducing serious medication errors. The authors are from Mercer University in Atlanta, Georgia.
Recommendations:
(1) Ask the patient what medications he or she is taking and the usual dosages.
(2) Check for allergies.
(3) Administer a test dose if an immediate reaction is possible.
(4) Control access to potentially hazardous medications.
(5) Clearly label all medications.
(6) Avoid abbreviations in prescriptions and labels and write out numbers unambiguously.
(7) Follow all mixing and dilution instructions precisely.
(8) Do not overwrite a prescription if an error occurs. Void and start a new one.
(9) Perform complex dilutions or reconstitutions in the pharmacy.
(10) Completely mix all preparations that are diluted or reconstituted.
Double check:
(1) If there is a drug with a similar name.
(2) If the dose is higher or lower than normal or just odd.
(3) If a calculation is involved.
(4) If the handwriting legibility of the prescription was in question.
(5) If diluting or mixing was involved.
(6) If there are special storage instructions.
(7) If the medication is associated with serious reactions.
Other recommendations not listed:
(1) Never put a medication into a bottle labeled with the name of a different medication.
(2) Visually inspect a liquid medication before it is administered.
(3) Double check if there is an emergency.
