Barriers to medication error reporting in a federally qualified health center

Abstract

Objective

To explore the National Coordinating Council for Medication Error Reporting and Prevention Categories of Errors health professionals are most likely to report and characterize what barriers to medication error reporting influence decisions to report and the extent they do so at a large federally qualified health center (FQHC).

Design

Prospective, cross-sectional, survey.

Setting and participants

A total of 161 medical professionals at a large FQHC clinic with a small pharmacy team.

Outcome measures

Survey responses to explore respondent understanding of medication error categories and the influence of barriers to medication error reporting on their decision to report.

Results

Thirty-six (22.4%) respondents completed the survey. Nearly 40% of respondents would not report a near-miss error and were influenced by workplace/environmental barriers significantly more than those who would report. Regardless of reporting experience or patient-care role, assessed barrier categories influence the decision to report similarly.

Conclusion

Near-miss medication errors are inconsistently reported. Efforts to improve reporting should emphasize addressing workplace/environmental barriers.