In a landmark 1999 study, To Err is Human, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) described the extent of medication errors in our health care system. Since then, hospitals have added patient-safety officers, beefed-up quality management oversight, and put a premium on quality improvement efforts, often as a requirement from state and national accreditation organizations. A couple of weeks ago, the IOM found that medication errors continue to happen often, and that the consequences to the patient and the pocketbook are dire. The IOM's new report found that errors in the way medications are prescribed, delivered, and taken harm 1.5 million people every year and, in the hospital setting alone, cost more than $3.5 billion per year to treat. Hospitals see roughly 400,000 preventable drug-related injuries each year--on average, more than one per day--while 800,000 more occur in long-term-care settings. It is predicted that roughly 7,000 deaths occur each year because of medication errors.

To combat those types of errors, the IOM outlines seven recommendations that medical staff, pharmacists, the government and--equally important--the patient should take in order to lessen the risk of error. Some authorities insist that the biggest problem is communication of the order. For examples, it is estimated that 25% of errors reported to the Institute involve drug naming, and another 20%-25% are attributed to labeling and packaging. Improving "medication reconciliation" is one activity hospitals have been trying to improve upon to reduce medication errors in care. This is when hospitals try to get information on what types of drugs patients are taking prior to admission. Finally, the report recommends that all healthcare providers should have plans to write prescriptions electronically by 2008.

I firmly believe that every parent should know exactly what medications are taken by their children, what they are intended for, and any potential side-effects or interactions that might occur. With the internet, this information can be quickly located and reviewed. Just how effective any recommendations will be, however, remains to be seen. I personally want to see if all health care providers write prescriptions electronically 2 years from now. I wouldn't bet on that one!