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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 3 page paper discusses the problem of errors, particularly abbreviation errors, in medication documentation, and the consequences of these mistakes. Bibliography lists 3 sources.
Page Count:
3 pages (~225 words per page)
File: KV32_HVabverr.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
what procedures should be developed if abbreviations are still to be used. Discussion How can eliminating abbreviations reduce errors? The answer is simple: abbreviations can be misread or misunderstood, causing
errors. If the abbreviation is replaced with the word written out in full, such errors should be eliminated. It is possible that someone might still have trouble reading anothers handwriting,
but errors due solely to misinterpretation of abbreviations will disappear when abbreviations are no longer used. Examples of abbreviations that are frequently misunderstood are as follows: "BT" is supposed
to mean "bedtime," but is misread as "BID" meaning "twice daily" (ISMPs list of error-prone abbreviations, symbols, and dose designations, 2004; hereafter "ISMPs list, 2004). The correction here is to
write out the word "bedtime" (ISMPs list, 2004). The abbreviation "qhs" is meant to mean "nightly at bedtime" but has been misread as "qhr" meaning "every hour" (ISMPs list, 2004).
The could mean that a medication meant to be given once, at bedtime, will instead be given at least eight times more frequently than it should be; this could lead
to overmedication at least and death at worst. The correction is to write out "nightly" (ISMPs list, 2004). The confusion may lie partly in the fact that the abbreviations largely
come from the Latin: "OD" is intended to mean "once daily" but is sometimes read as "oculus dexter," meaning the right eye, leading to medication being given in the eye
rather than elsewhere (ISMPs list, 2004). It will be difficult, if not impossible, to get medical professionals to give up the archaic Latin terminology-for one thing, it separates them from
mere mortals. But for the sake of clarity, and in particular when so many medical professionals are not native English speakers, it would seem a wise move to either abandon
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