PRESCRIPTION ERRORS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY: A CROSS-SECTIONAL, OBSERVATIONAL STUDY
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Objective:Â Prescription writing is an art. Writing a correct prescription in compliance with the WHO guidelines requires regular practice. Mistakes
in prescription writing are inevitable. Hence, this study was done to analyze the prescriptions from the Outpatient Department of Obstetrics and
Gynaecology for errors. To analyze the prevalence and types of common prescribing errors in the Outpatient Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.
Methods:Â This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Pharmacy, Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Puducherry. 500
prescriptions from the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Outpatient Department were collected and analyzed. The study duration was 6 months (JulyDecember
2014). The prescriptions
were
analyzed
for
errors.
Results: Our study revealed that 30.8% of the prescriptions had, at least, one error in them. The majority of the prescriptions had the doctors' sign
and patient details written in them. The dose of the drug was missing in about 38% of the prescriptions. None of the prescriptions had Type A error
in our study.
Conclusion:Â It was found that prescription errors are still prevalent. The prescribers' have to be updated about the prescribing guidelines and regular
auditing should be done to avoid these errors.
Keywords: Prescription errors, Obstetrics and gynaecology, Classification of errors.
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References
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