A Pharmacy and Nursing Collaborative: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Patient Safety

Purpose:
Improving medication and patient safety requires a multidisciplinary approach. This presentation describes the methods by which an academic medical center implemented a successful model of pharmacy and nursing collaboration to enhance patient safety and the medication management system.

Significance:
The medication delivery system is impacted by all patient service departments. Research suggests a decrease in medication errors, continuous quality improvement and an increase in patient safety is best achieved through combined efforts of a multidisciplinary team.

Strategy and Implementation:
To address the need for pharmacy and nursing partnership, a multidisciplinary committee was established. Membership consists of clinical representatives from inpatient and outpatient nursing, pharmacy and respiratory therapy. The committee addresses intradepartmental issues occurring at any phase of the medication use process. Committee charges include reviewing hospital policies related to medication management, evaluating trends and system issues identified by occurrence reporting of medication errors, providing practice recommendations to remedy identified issues, and disseminating committee initiatives to other hospital staff. Ongoing collaborative activities consist of standardizing care by creating drug protocols and preprinted order sets, minimizing drug concentrations to decrease the risk of error, improving efficiencies to ensure timely and safe access to medication therapies, and actively participating in the implementation of technologies for safe medication administration.

Evaluation:
This collaborative committee has initiated measurable process improvements to the medication use process, enhanced patient safety and supported the organization's achievement of being recognized as the highest-performing academic hospital in the United States for delivery of quality healthcare.

Implications for Practice:
Successful implementation of a multidisciplinary committee with members committed to sustaining a culture of safety can result in an efficient and improved medication management system, as well as enhanced patient care.