Medication Reconciliation

Copublished with the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), the Medication Reconciliation Handbook, Second Edition, is a valuable resource for health care organizations seeking to avoid medication errors that can lead to death or serious injury. The medication reconciliation process focuses on improving communication of medication information at key points of transition in a patient's care, such as upon admission, during transfer from one department to another, or at discharge--the points at which medication errors are most likely to occur. The handbook offers step-by-step advice on how to establish and implement an efficient and effective medication reconciliation process, including tips for educating staff, patients, and the public. Domestic and international case studies from the field describe proven methods for forming a team to incorporate medication reconciliation into the organization's overall processes.

Health literacy in practice requires the development of techniques that ensure that the patient can better access information, understand its content, know how to use this information, and make better health decisions. If the patient makes better health decisions, there are immediate reflexes in health outcomes. The aim is to develop an approach based on the commitment and creation of an atmosphere of trust that reduces uncertainty, anxiety, and embarrassment based on a process of assertive, clear, and positive communication (ACP model). The Handbook of Research on Assertiveness, Clarity, and Positivity in Health Literacy brings the consolidation of knowledge, strategies, and techniques to improve health literacy. This book discusses the importance of making sound health decisions: decisions that can save lives, prevent premature deaths, avoid hospitalizations and abusive resources to medical emergencies, and improve overall health outcomes for the individual, family, community, and society. Covering topics such as dietary guidance, health behavior change models, and medication reconciliation, this resource has theoretical and practical aspects essential to health information libraries, hospitals, clinics, health centers, health schools, patient associations, health professionals, medical students, researchers, professors, and academicians.

In 1996 the Institute of Medicine launched the Quality Chasm Series, a series of reports focused on assessing and improving the nation's quality of health care. Preventing Medication Errors is the newest volume in the series. Responding to the key messages in earlier volumes of the seriesâ€"To Err Is Human (2000), Crossing the Quality Chasm (2001), and Patient Safety (2004)â€"this book sets forth an agenda for improving the safety of medication use. It begins by providing an overview of the system for drug development, regulation, distribution, and use. Preventing Medication Errors also examines the peer-reviewed literature on the incidence and the cost of medication errors and the effectiveness of error prevention strategies. Presenting data that will foster the reduction of medication errors, the book provides action agendas detailing the measures needed to improve the safety of medication use in both the short- and long-term. Patients, primary health care providers, health care organizations, purchasers of group health care, legislators, and those affiliated with providing medications and medication- related products and services will benefit from this guide to reducing medication errors.

Experts estimate that as many as 98,000 people die in any given year from medical errors that occur in hospitals. That's more than die from motor vehicle accidents, breast cancer, or AIDSâ€"three causes that receive far more public attention. Indeed, more people die annually from medication errors than from workplace injuries. Add the financial cost to the human tragedy, and medical error easily rises to the top ranks of urgent, widespread public problems. To Err Is Human breaks the silence that has surrounded medical errors and their consequenceâ€"but not by pointing fingers at caring health care professionals who make honest mistakes. After all, to err is human. Instead, this book sets forth a national agendaâ€"with state and local implicationsâ€"for reducing medical errors and improving patient safety through the design of a safer health system. This volume reveals the often startling statistics of medical error and the disparity between the incidence of error and public perception of it, given many patients' expectations that the medical profession always performs perfectly. A careful examination is made of how the surrounding forces of legislation, regulation, and market activity influence the quality of care provided by health care organizations and then looks at their handling of medical mistakes. Using a detailed case study, the book reviews the current understanding of why these mistakes happen. A key theme is that legitimate liability concerns discourage reporting of errorsâ€"which begs the question, "How can we learn from our mistakes?" Balancing regulatory versus market-based initiatives and public versus private efforts, the Institute of Medicine presents wide-ranging recommendations for improving patient safety, in the areas of leadership, improved data collection and analysis, and development of effective systems at the level of direct patient care. To Err Is Human asserts that the problem is not bad people in health careâ€"it is that good people are working in bad systems that need to be made safer. Comprehensive and straightforward, this book offers a clear prescription for raising the level of patient safety in American health care. It also explains how patients themselves can influence the quality of care that they receive once they check into the hospital. This book will be vitally important to federal, state, and local health policy makers and regulators, health professional licensing officials, hospital administrators, medical educators and students, health caregivers, health journalists, patient advocatesâ€"as well as patients themselves. First in a series of publications from the Quality of Health Care in America, a project initiated by the Institute of Medicine

A guide to the medication reconciliation process for healthcare facilities.

This handbook is an invaluable tool for health care organizations seeking to implement an effective medication reconciliation process. Medication errors commonly occur at points of transition in care, such as at admission, during transfer from one department to another, or at discharge. A medication reconciliation process can help your organization decrease the incidents of medication errors at these points. Numerous case studies describe successes in forming a team to incorporate medication reconciliation in their processes. The Joint Commission's National Patient Safety Goal on medication reconciliation is also discussed.

Medication reconciliation is not easy ... but when implemented effectively, the process will help you : increase patient safety which will reduce medication errors - one of the leading causes of injury to patients; comply with new JCAHO requirements; and improve efficiency by avoiding double documentation and saving staff time and resources. This book offers proven techniques, tools, and tips you can use to implement the medication reconciliation process into your facility. This book also focuses on the unique challenges you're likely to encounter as you prepare a patient's medication list. Specifically, it will address the needs of organizations based on their : size (small vs. large hospitals); format (electronic vs. paper-based records); and setting type (inpatient vs. outpatient).

Through the contributions of over 30 global experts, this book meets the growing need to understand the development and implementation of pharmaceutical care. This guide to pharmaceutical Care implementation details the pharmacist's role in providing a broad array of care to various kinds of patients, using strategies that improve humanistic, economic and clinical outcomes. Written with a focus for students, pharmacists and researchers, this book offers multiple scenarios to advance the care of patients. It will enhance the knowledge and skills of the providers. The examples describe the details of the structured processes from pharmacists and researchers who have worked in these fields for many years: detecting drug-related problems, providing pharmaceutical care in different settings (community, nursing homes, hospitals and clinics), evaluating research-indicators and outcomes, and teaching at universities and colleges. Readers will use this book to: Improve their skills to prevent, detect and solve drug-related problems Develop and improve communication skills to establish useful relationships with patients and healthcare professionals. Understand the characteristics of (pharmaceutical) care for patients in different settings Use different tools to showcase pharmaceutical care services Learn the role of standards, guidelines, protocols and indicators to guide and evaluate pharmaceutical care Understand the importance of the documentation of pharmaceutical care practices and create evidence and opportunities for remuneration Consolidate knowledge from different global studies and research outcomes.