Risk Assessment of Drug Management Process in Women Surgery Department of Qaem Educational Hospital (QEH) Using HFMEA Method (2013)

Evaluation and improvement of drug management process is essential for patient safety. The present study was performed whit the aim of assessing risk of drug management process in Women Surgery Department of QEH using HFMEA method in 2013. A mixed method was used to analys failure modes and their effects with HFMEA. To classify failure modes; nursing errors in clinical management model, for classifying factors affecting error; approved model by the UK National Health System, and for determining solutions for improvement; Theory of Inventive Problem Solving, were used. 48 failure modes were identified for 14 sub-process of five steps drug management process. The frequency of failure modes were as follow: 35.3% in supplying step, 20.75% in prescription step, 10.4% in preparing step, 22.9% in distribution step and 10.35% in follow up and monitoring step. Seventeen failure modes (35.14%) were considered as non-acceptable risk (hazard score ≥ 8) and were transferred to decision tree. Among 51 Influencing factors, the most common reasons for error were related to environmental factors (21.5%), and the less common reasons for error were related to patient factors (4.3%). Revision and reengineering of drug management process, revision and updating proper way of drug prescription, assessing adverse drug reactions (ADR), patient identification bracelet, holding periodical pharmaceutical conferences to improve personnel knowledge, patient contribution in drug therapy, increasing control and surveillance systems, and improving condition of drug stores; are performance solutions which were placed in work order.