Annotated Bibliography on Barcode Technology in Nursing

Annotated Bibliography on Barcode Technology in Nursing

Electronic Medication Administration with Barcoding

My topic of choice is electronic medication administration with barcoding. My rationale for choosing this technology topic is based on the fact that medication administration errors are common in most healthcare organizations, posing a threat to the safety and quality of care delivered to patients. I am interested in this technology because it has been identified with increased levels of patient safety, particularly in the administration of medication, by increasing accuracy during the medication administration process, hence lessening medication errors. I made use of Google Scholar, Science Direct, PubMed, and the Capella University Library as my databases. The key search terms used were “Electronic medication administration with barcoding.” Our assignment writing services will allow you to attend to more important tasks as our experts handle your task.

Annotated Bibliography

Naidu, M., & Alicia, Y. L. Y. (2019). Impact of barcode medication administration and electronic medication administration record system in clinical practice for an effective medication administration process. Health, 11(05), 511. doi: 10.4236/health.2019.115044.

This article focuses on the effect that barcode medication administration, in accompaniment with the electronic medication administration record system, has on the medication administration process. This source cites human factors such as fatigue, inattention while handling medication, and workload as responsible for most medication errors. To prevent such errors and improve patient safety, the authors suggest the use of barcode medication administration and an electronic medication administration record system. These technologies are said to have the ability to prevent unduly near-misses and medication errors, which are common in healthcare facilities. The technology works by ensuring that the right patient gets the right medication following the five rights and the information that is encrypted in the barcodes on every medication pack as well as patient’s barcode identification tag to enable nurses to scan and verify the necessary details before every medication administration. The relevance of this technology to nursing practice and the interdisciplinary team, particularly nurses, pharmacists, and physicians, is that it would help improve the quality and safety of care by lessening medication errors as well as costs associated with such errors. The interdisciplinary team needs to undergo proper training and education to facilitate the safety of use and knowledge of troubleshooting to lessen process failure if the equipment fails. This article offers in-depth insight into barcode technology, including important information like implementation, the general process of change, and staff resistance, and recommends ways of overcoming implementation challenges (such as effective communication), hence making it one of the key articles for the research.

Truitt, E., Thompson, R., Blazey-Martin, D., Nisai, D., & Salem, D. (2016). Effect of the implementation of barcode technology and an electronic medication administration record on adverse drug events. Hospital Pharmacy, 51 (6), 474-483. doi: 10.1310/hpj5106-474

This article focuses on the impact of barcode medication administration and electronic medication administration record technology on adverse drug events. Having conducted research on this topic, the authors report that this technology enhances patient safety by lessening the general rate of transcription errors and adverse drug events. The technologies also lessened the harmful effect on patients caused by medication administration errors. The relevance of this technology to nursing practice is that it helps improve patient safety and quality of care by lessening cases of adverse drug events. The electronic medication administration record technology impacted the work of the interdisciplinary team, particularly nurses and pharmacists, by enhancing communication between them and lessening transcription errors. This article was selected because it is primary research that narrows down to the efficacy of barcode technology on adverse drug events, revealing that the technology can indeed improve patient safety and care.

Strudwick, G., Reisdorfer, E., Warnock, C., Kalia, K., Sulkers, H., Clark, C., & Booth, R. (2017). Factors Associated With Barcode Medication Administration Technology That Contribute to Patient Safety. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 0(0), 1-7.

The focus of this research is on the effect that barcode administration technology has on medication errors and the manner in which nurses make use of such technologies. This source reveals that when properly used and implemented, barcode medication administration technology improves patient safety by lessening medication administration errors. The authors suggest that this technology impacts the nursing practice by requiring nurses to assess whether the barcode technologies are fully utilized for patient safety, and scanning needs to be done to determine nurses or clinical areas that require extra support in their use of the technology. This technology is relevant to the work of the interdisciplinary healthcare team because it facilitates a streamlined workflow, but when improperly implemented due to factors such as rigid systems that fail to support the workflows of the interdisciplinary team, then workarounds like nursing cheat sheets are observed. This article is useful in this study because it provides information on why barcode technologies might fail and offers recommendations on what could be done to facilitate the smooth implementation of barcode technology.

Macias, M., Bernabeu-Andreu, F. A., Arribas, I., Navarro, F., & Baldominos, G. (2018). Impact of a Barcode Medication Administration System on Patient Safety. In Oncology Nursing Forum, 45(1), 1-13. doi: 10.1188/18.ONF.E1-E13

This primary research article focuses on the effect of a barcode medication administration system on patient safety, particularly in an onco-hematology day unit. The authors recommend the use of barcode medication administration because it is associated with a significant reduction in medication administration errors (up to 81 per cent reduction) by allowing nurses to verify the five rights of medication administration (dose, route, time, drug, and patient). The study has major implications for nursing practice since the barcode medication administration system is considered a useful technology for checking the five rights of medication administration. The authors outline the importance of an interprofessional team, particularly oncology nurses, who are said to play a major role in the success of the maintenance and implementation of the barcode technology. This article was selected because it ventured into a unit (oncology) with little research regarding barcode technology’s efficacy in lessening medication administration errors.

Thompson, K. M., Swanson, K. M., Cox, D. L., Kirchner, R. B., Russell, J. J., Wermers, R. A., … & Naessens, J. M. (2018). Implementation of barcode medication administration to reduce patient harm. Mayo Clinic Proceedings: Innovations, Quality & Outcomes, 2(4), 342-351. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocpiqo.2018.09.001

This primary research article assesses the effect of barcode medication administration technology on medication administration error rates in an inpatient setting. The authors analyzed the effect of barcode technologies in hospitals between 2007 and 2013. During this time, they recorded a 43.5 per cent reduction in medication administration errors. The rate of harmful medication errors is said to have reduced to 0.29 per 100,000 medications, down from 0.65 per 100,000 medications before the intervention. A total 55.4 percent reduction in actual patient harm events were recorded, hence outlining the positive effect of the barcode technology in enhancing patient safety and care. The study has important nursing practice implications because it informs on ways of lessening harms caused by medication administration errors so as to improve patient care and safety and also reduce the legal, reputational, and other costs associated with such patient harm. The authors claim that some of the errors that occurred after the implementation of the barcode technology were linked to communication errors, discharge planning, and failure to comprehend risks. Factors related to communication errors outline the importance of training and effective communication among members of the interdisciplinary team to facilitate increased efficacy of the technology in lessening medical administration errors and improving patient safety. This article was chosen because it makes use of longitudinal data to identify the effect of the technology on actual patient harm and adverse drug events.

Barakat, S., & Franklin, B. D. (2020). An Evaluation of the Impact of Barcode Patient and Medication Scanning on Nursing Workflow at a UK Teaching Hospital. Pharmacy, 8(3), 148.

Unlike most of the other articles, this article focuses on the effect of barcode technology on nursing workflow. The authors chose this topic because little is known about it, given that more researchers have focused on barcode technology’s impact on lessening medication errors. The research shows that barcode technology lessens the timeliness of medication administration, medication verification, patient identification, and the general patterns of workflows. The technology is said to have streamlined workflow, increasing patient identification to 100 per cent from 74 per cent and increasing the rate of medication scans, which are representative of a general increment in patient safety. This technology is important to nursing practice because it streamlines workflow, improving care quality. However, improper implementation could result in workarounds, and hence training of the interdisciplinary team on the proper use of the technology, particularly for nurses, is recommended. This article was chosen because it provides unique information not found in other articles regarding the impact of barcode technology on nursing workflow and, ultimately, patient safety.

Conclusion

The key learning from the articles is that there is strong evidence to prove the effectiveness of barcode medication administration in reducing medication administration errors and improving the general care and safety of patients. The articles suggest the need for proper training of the interdisciplinary team, particularly nurses, physicians, and pharmacists, in the use of barcode technology to enhance its efficacy. Effective communication is of utmost importance. Such organizational factors as resources, training programs, and employee empowerment are essential in the implementation of the technology. The technology requires proper training and education to enable confidence in its use and lessen resistance. Implementing the barcode technology is linked to increased patient safety care, and satisfaction due to reduction of patient harm and medication administration errors. Proper training in the use of the technology will reduce costs linked to patient harm or even deaths in the organization and will also enhance interdisciplinary team productivity by streamlining workflow.

References

Barakat, S., & Franklin, B. D. (2020). An Evaluation of the Impact of Barcode Patient and Medication Scanning on Nursing Workflow at a UK Teaching Hospital. Pharmacy, 8(3), 148.

Macias, M., Bernabeu-Andreu, F. A., Arribas, I., Navarro, F., & Baldominos, G. (2018). Impact of a Barcode Medication Administration System on Patient Safety. In Oncology Nursing Forum, 45(1), 1-13. doi: 10.1188/18.ONF.E1-E13

Naidu, M., & Alicia, Y. L. Y. (2019). Impact of barcode medication administration and electronic medication administration record system in clinical practice for an effective medication administration process. Health, 11(05), 511 https://doi.org/10.4236/health.2019.115044.

Strudwick, G., Reisdorfer, E., Warnock, C., Kalia, K., Sulkers, H., Clark, C.,& Booth, R. (2017). Factors Associated With Barcode Medication Administration Technology That Contribute to Patient Safety. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 0(0), 1-7.

Thompson, K. M., Swanson, K. M., Cox, D. L., Kirchner, R. B., Russell, J. J., Wermers, R. A., … & Naessens, J. M. (2018). Implementation of barcode medication administration to reduce patient harm. Mayo Clinic Proceedings: Innovations, Quality & Outcomes, 2(4), 342-351. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocpiqo.2018.09.001

Truitt, E., Thompson, R., Blazey-Martin, D., Nisai, D., & Salem, D. (2016). Effect of the implementation of barcode technology and an electronic medication administration record on adverse drug events. Hospital Pharmacy, 51 (6), 474-483. doi: 10.1310/hpj5106-474