Medication errors involving wrong administration technique.

This study analyzed US Pharmacopeia's MEDMARX error-reporting database to describe characteristics of medication errors resulting from wrong administration techniques. The authors discuss the severity of errors captured and their location of origin, in addition to the most frequent contributing factors, which included performance deficit and failure to follow a protocol. Drawing from more than 7200 wrong administration technique errors, a number of true case examples are provided to illustrate the nature and scope of the problem. The authors conclude with a series of recommendations focused on greater training in administration techniques (eg, infusion pumps and dispensing devices) as well as education on a number of high-risk medications implicated in the findings.