ISMP Updates List of Error-Prone Abbreviations
In April 2024, ISMP updated the List of Error-Prone Abbreviations, Symbols, and Dose Designations. The list contains abbreviations, symbols, and dose designations that have led to patient harm and should not be used when communicating medical information.
Abbreviations, symbols, and certain dose designations are a convenience; a time saver; a means of fitting a word, phrase, or dose into a restricted space; and a way to avoid misspellings. However, they are sometimes misunderstood, misread, or misinterpreted, occasionally resulting in patient harm. Their use can also waste time tracking down their meaning, sometimes delaying patient care. The abbreviations, symbols, and dose designations were reported to ISMP through the ISMP National Medication Errors Reporting Program (ISMP MERP) and have been misinterpreted and involved in harmful or potentially harmful medication errors. They should NOT be used when communicating medical information verbally, electronically, and/or in handwritten applications. This includes internal communications; verbal, handwritten, or electronic prescriptions; handwritten and computer-generated medication labels; drug storage bin labels; medication administration records; and screens associated with pharmacy and prescriber computer order entry systems, automated dispensing cabinets, smart infusion pumps, and other medication-related technologies.
The updated list can be found here.
For additional information about medication safety, check out Medical Mutual’s practice tip Medication Safety in the Office Practice.
This article falls under Clinical/Patient Safety in the Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) risk domains.
Risks associated with the delivery of care to patients, residents and other health care customers. Clinical risks include: failure to follow evidence based practice, medication errors, hospital acquired conditions (HAC), serious safety events (SSE), health care equity, opportunities to improve safety within the care environments, and others.