Medicines are formulated to treat various diseases and improve your health. However, unfortunate human errors and communication failures in the prescribing process may cause unnecessary risk to the patient. This is one of the many problems that the DirectRx pharmaceutical repackaging facility wants to help prevent. Our prepackaged medications include more than 2000 sku’s of the most commonly prescribed, generic medicines. Each one is pre-labeled with the proper FDA and CFR required labeling, which includes clear, legible information about the medication being dispensed. Combined with our customizable dispensing programs, many of the errors associated with prescribing can be drastically reduced. Learn more about our facility in this article.
The Danger of Medication Errors
Many medication errors are preventable, but those that slip through the cracks can cause potential adverse effects for a patient. Often times,, many cases of medication errors go unreported as patients are often unaware that a mistake has occurred. Research has shown that approximately 7,000 patient deaths every year are attributed to medication errors.
Medication errors can happen anywhere in the treatment process. In fact, a study has shown that 30% of errors happen during prescription (underprescribing, overprescribing, illegible penmanship), 24% during dispensing (wrong label, drug, or formulation), and 41% during administration (wrong dose, route of administration, duration, and frequency).
How to prevent medication errors:
1. Use pre-packaged medications.
To improve patient outcomes and prevent medicine errors, DirectRx makes prepackaged medications available and ready to be dispensed directly in the doctor’s clinic. Patients no longer have to go to a pharmacy to get their medicines. Not only is this method more convenient for patients, it also improves patient compliance with their medications. Moreover, research also shows that using prepackaged antimalarial medications in malaria-endemic countries has gained positive results.
2. Double-check the bottle label before dispensing
While DirectRx’s dispensing software has many security settings in place to prevent an incorrect medication from being dispensed, you should always double-check the label of the bottle removed from the medication cabinet prior to dispensing. Many medications have very similar names, strengths or pill sizes. For example: Amoxicillin 500mg #30 Tabs, vs. Amoxicillin 250mg #30 Tabs. Dispensing the incorrect strength could cause serious side-effects that are completely avoidable. Using a barcode scanner when dispensing can also ensure that what you scan is the same medication as prescribed in the software.
3. Ensure the patient understands their medication regimen.
When a medication is dispensed to the patient, ensure that they truly understand how to take it. Many patients are uncomfortable asking for further details about the method of use or side effects of a medication from a Pharmacist, because they don’t have the convenience of privacy when standing in line at an open store or pharmacy. With dispensing, you have the advantage of a more secure, one-on-one setting in which to speak with your patient. Be sure to properly state the name of the medicine,, the route, the time/interval, the dosage, and the duration. The DirectRx dispensing label also includes all of the medication warnings, side effects and information that can be reviewed by the patient.
4. If you’re not sure, ask.
Don’t assume anything. If you are not sure about something, or have any doubts, DirectRx is here to help! We have a knowledgeable support team specifically trained to answer questions not only about dispensing, but issues you may have with the function of the dispensing software itself. We can fix an issue right away so your patient can leave your practice with the right medication in hand and the confidence that they received the best possible care.
Learn more about DirectRx pharmaceutical repackaging
DirectRx is a DEA- and FDA-approved pharmaceutical repackaging facility that makes point-of-care medication and dispensing programs possible for licensed healthcare providers. Our dispensing program includes the prepackaging, labeling, and distribution of dispense-ready, FDA-approved medications in unit-of-use quantities requested by the physician. We follow a rigorous 20-step quality control process to ensure the purity, quality, safety, and traceability of over 2,000 commonly prescribed medicines in various medication classes. For more information and inquiries, contact us or call us at 678-619-5510.
The material contained on this site is for informational purposes only and DOES NOT CONSTITUTE THE PROVIDING OF MEDICAL ADVICE, and is not intended to be a substitute for independent professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare providers with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your health.
