Medication errors are on the rise in the United States. This is the observation made by the Research Institute of the Nationwide Children’s Hospital, whose research have been published in the journal Clinical Toxicology. For the purposes of this study, scientists were only interested in patients who took the wrong drug or who made a dosage error outside of healthcare facilities.
400 deaths in 13 years
The team of researchers discovered, thanks to data collected by American poison control centers, that they had received more than 67,000 calls concerning medication errors between 2000 and 2012. The study reveals that during this period, the number The number of victims of this phenomenon increased from 3,065 in 2000 to 6,855 in 2012. Even more alarming: during these years of research, 400 people have died as a result of medication errors. Which drug categories are most often associated with serious outcomes? Those used in the treatment of cardiovascular disease, pain relievers or hormones, reveals the study.
“Drug manufacturers and pharmacists have a role to play in reducing medication errors,” said declared Henry Spiller, co-author of the study. To stem the problem, researchers are also in favor of improved packaging and drug inserts, and recommend the use of pill organizers.
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