“Smart” infusion pumps were developed to reduce adverse drug events and medication administration errors; however, research has shown that IV infusions continue to cause 54% of adverse drug events, 56% of medication errors, and 61% of serious and life-threatening errors. During an upcoming online seminar, experts from the Western Maryland Health System and Angola, Ind-based Cameron Memorial Community Hospital will discuss how they improved patient safety through drug library compliance.
“Overriding and manually bypassing key safety features of smart infusion pumps, such as drug libraries, puts patients at risk,” says Marilyn Neder Flack, senior vice president of patient safety initiatives and executive director of the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) Foundation. “This free seminar promises an interesting look at the challenges and benefits of implementing infusion therapy safety initiatives to increase drug library compliance. By sharing this information, other organizations don’t have to reinvent the wheel to implement similar initiatives with their own staff.”
The complimentary seminar, hosted by the AAMI Foundation’s National Coalition for Infusion Therapy Safety and the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists, will be held Monday, August 8, from 12 pm to 1 pm ET. The speakers will be Christine Ruhl, CCRN, director of critical care services for Western Maryland Health System in Cumberland, MD; Scott Hirschy, RN, IT applications manager for Cameron Memorial Community Hospital in Angola, IN; and Andrew Aldred, PharmD, director of pharmacy and materials management for Cameron Memorial Community Hospital.
Nurses, physicians, project managers, health care technology professionals—including biomedical and clinical engineers—patient safety managers, IT specialists, and others involved in ensuring infusion therapy safety are encouraged to register. The seminar is free; however, those wishing to receive CE credit will need to pay $25 following the event.
