Outcome of The Developing of Unit Dose System for Continued Drug by Using an Automated Drug Dispenser in Inpatient Wards

Abstract

Background: Lampang Hospital changed its drug distribution system for continued drug orders in inpatient wards to an automated unit-dose drug dispenser in February 2021. The new system was implemented due to higher dispensing errors than the target in the previous one-day drug distribution method. The incidence of drug administration errors was also approaching the quality assurance target limits.

Objectives: The study aims to evaluate the outcomes following the use of the automated unit-dose drug dispenser, focusing on the incidence of drug dispensing errors, drug administration errors, and stakeholder satisfaction.

Methods: The study employs a mixed-methods approach, using a retrospective descriptive design. It includes an analysis of the duration of drug dispensing, the percentage of medications dispensed within the target time, the incidence of drug dispensing and administration errors, and a survey on the satisfaction of nurses and staff in the inpatient pharmacy department.

Results: Dispensing errors of severity level C and above decreased significantly (p-value = 0.004). However, administration errors increased, though not significantly (p-value = 0.732). The duration of drug dispensing lengthened (p-value = 0.003), and the completion rate of continued drug dispensing within the set time decreased (p-value = 0.006). Nurses were highly satisfied with the reduction of their workload in tablet administration. Pharmacy support staff expressed greater satisfaction with the system than pharmacy technicians and pharmacists.

Conclusion: The automated unit-dose drug dispenser for inpatients reduced drug dispensing errors but increased drug administration errors of severity level C and above. Additionally, the system increased the time required for dispensing tasks. Nevertheless, both pharmacy and nursing staff reported high overall satisfaction with the system.