There are also opportunities for medication errors once the patient leaves the physician's office or the hospital.

When the Patient Leaves the Office

Dispensing errors at the pharmacy
Failure to read or understand labeling and/or product information
Drug (e.g., over-the-counter [OTCs]) or food interactions
Non-adherence
prescription not filled or refilled
wrong dose, wrong time
improper administration (e.g., asthma inhalers)
When patients leave the office, another common problem is non-adherence to prescriptions. Sometimes they don't get the prescription filled or refilled, or they take their medicine at the wrong dose, the wrong time, or the wrong way -- as with asthma inhalers. The control of drug administration is out of a physician's hands when the patient goes home, which means it's even more important that the patient or caregiver understands the instructions for the patient's medication.

Patients or caregivers are in control.
Pharmacists are your partners.
Information and education are critical:
Is labeling/information easy to read?
Is labeling/information easy to understand?
How do you know?
When patients leave the office, they or their caregivers are in control; this touches on the importance of teamwork and collaboration with other members of the health care team. When it comes to medication safety at home, pharmacists in the community are perhaps your most valuable partners. They are the most accessible conduit for information and education, which is critical when patients are on their own.

It's important to know whether or not the drug's labeling and patient information are easy to read and understand. Of course, the question is this: How do you know? Aside from handing patients brochures or papers with drug information, do you or a qualified nurse talk with your patients to assure that they can read and understand what you've given them? Do you have a nurse call patients at home to make sure they are adhering to the prescription you gave them? These are examples of what's often necessary to assure medication safety.

A dispensing error at the community pharmacy can be caused by a poorly handwritten prescription, or if a prescription has been called in to the pharmacy, there's a mistake due to a sound-alike name. All too often, patients fail to read or understand the labeling and product information on their prescribed medications. This underscores the importance of giving patients thorough instructions on the use of any prescribed medications and checking that they understand those instructions. Drug or food interactions are another common cause of medication errors at home, especially related to over-the-counter medications the patient may not have told you they are taking.