To evaluate the effectiveness of targeted interventions in optimising Beyond-Use Date (BUD) management and workload distribution to reduce intravenous (IV) medication errors and improve patient safety in a resource-limited hospital setting.
This study employed a pre- and post-intervention observational design.
A four-month intervention was conducted at a large tertiary hospital in China, following a baseline assessment of IV medication practices. The intervention included the establishment of BUD guidelines, redistribution of staff workloads and targeted training sessions. IV preparation and administration errors were observed in Pharmacy Intravenous Admixture Services (PIVAS) centers and medical wards, and changes in error rates were recorded.
In the PIVAS center, IV preparation errors decreased from 0.19% to 0.12%. Medical wards showed a decrease in administration errors from 38.3% to 30.0%, with improvements noted in areas such as adherence to BUD and storage protocols. The intervention demonstrated significant improvements in medication safety by enhancing BUD compliance and balancing workloads.
The implementation of structured BUD guidelines, workload optimisation, and training significantly reduced IV medication errors, highlighting the effectiveness of management-driven interventions in improving safety practices within hospital settings.
This study underscores the importance of BUD management and balanced workloads in reducing medication errors, contributing to safer and more efficient IV medication administration.
This study addresses the challenge of medication errors in resource-constrained healthcare environments, providing evidence that structured management interventions can enhance patient safety. The findings are relevant to healthcare providers and managers in similar settings.
This study follows the TIDieR and STROBE guidelines for structured reporting.
No patient or public contribution.
The objective of this study was to investigate the risk factors associated with surgical site infection (SSI) after percutaneous endoscopic lumbar discectomy (PELD) in patients with lumbar disc herniation (LDH). A retrospective analysis was performed on a cohort of 335 patients who underwent PELD between January 2016 and January 2023. Data were derived from the Hospital Information System (HIS), and a comprehensive statistical assessment was performed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 25.0. Both univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses assessed a range of risk determinants, such as age, body mass index (BMI), comorbidities, laboratory test parameters and surgery-related variables. The incidence of SSI after PELD was 2.7% (9/335). Univariate analysis highlighted BMI, diabetes mellitus, long-term corticosteroid consumption, surgical time and cerebrospinal fluid leakage as significant predictors of SSI. Multivariate logistic regression identified BMI, diabetes mellitus, long-term corticosteroid consumption, surgical time and cerebrospinal fluid leakage as significant risk factors for SSI after PELD. High BMI, diabetes mellitus, long-term corticosteroid consumption, long surgical time and postoperative cerebrospinal fluid leakage are predisposing factors for SSI in patients undergoing PELD. Precise interventions focused on such risk components, including careful preoperative assessment and strategic postoperative care, are essential to reduce the incidence of SSI and improve surgical efficacy.