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Letters to the Editor
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Medicines information
Error database clarification
From J. M. Horwood, MRPharmS, and others
We would like to clarify the recent news item about the establishment
of a medicines information
error database (PJ, 15 January, p42). As written,
the piece could suggest that this database is duplicating work already
being undertaken by the National Patient Safety Association and other recognised
schemes. We would like to reassure readers that this is not the case and
explain its purpose.
The database referred to has been set up by the Clinical Governance Working
Group of UK Medicines Information (UKMi) to capture data on incidents (errors
and near misses) occurring within the practice of MI services in NHS hospital
pharmacy departments across the UK. It has been named IRMIS (Incident Reporting
in Medicines Information Scheme) to reflect this. It has not been set up
to record medication errors and near misses occurring during prescribing,
administration etc, because there are existing systems to capture these
data.
The database is secured on the NHSnet and is accessed via individual user
names and passwords. It is available to all hospital MI services in the
UK and all data are anonymous.
Any incidents occurring with MI practice should be reported via hospital
trust reporting systems in the same way as dispensing errors, but should
also be reported via IRMIS. By collecting data about incidents within our
own practice in a central database, we will be able to determine trends
and share learning. This will help to reduce the likelihood of similar
incidents occurring in the practice of other MI services and inform training
programmes, risk management strategies and national standards accordingly.
The NPSA is aware of the scheme and we will ensure our learning is fed
into the work of the agency so that it is shared more widely.
Julia Horwood
Elena Grant
Fiona Woods
Clinical Governance Working Groups
UKMi |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal