Economic downturn may be weakening medication safety, patient safety
Patient Safety Monitor Alert
January 20, 2010
A survey undertaken by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices last fall has shown that the economic downturn has forced staff cuts, reduced the amount of technology and equipment that hospitals can purchase, and negatively affected the culture of safety by reducing the amount of time staff members have to report errors.
Nearly 850 people took the survey and of those, 41% said the economy had a large to moderate negative impact on medication safety in particular. Also, 20% of respondents said that the poor economy has contributed to a medication error at their facilities in the past year by causing less time for double checks on medications and more medication administration shortcuts due to decreased staffing.
To read more about the survey findings, see this HealthLeaders Media article.
