Bar coding medication administration: Preparing the culture for change

It began in 1999 with a shocking report from the Institute of Medicine that 44,000 to 98,000 Americans die each year as a result of medical errors in the hospital.1 Medication errors account for approximately 7000 of those reported errors. The National Coordinating Council for Medication Error Reporting and Prevention defines a medication error as “any preventable event that may cause or lead to inappropriate medication use or patient harm while the medication is in the control of the health care professional, patient, or consumer. Such events may be related to professional practice, health care products, procedures and systems, including prescribing; order communication; product labeling, packaging, and nomenclature; compounding; dispensing; distribution; administration; education; monitoring; and use.”2