Clinical review: medication errors in critical care

Abstract

Medication errors in critical care are frequent, serious, and predictable. Critically ill patients are prescribed twice as many medications as patients outside of the intensive care unit (ICU) and nearly all will suffer a potentially life-threatening error at some point during their stay. The aim of this article is to provide a basic review of medication errors in the ICU, identify risk factors for medication errors, and suggest strategies to prevent errors and manage their consequences.

Figure 1

James Reason's Swiss cheese model of defenses. Reprinted from the BMJ [71] (copyright 2000) with permission from the BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.