Association of Medication Error Occurrence with General Health and Anxiety Caused by Covid-19 Disease in Nurses of Imam Reza Hospital of Ahvaz in 2020: A Descriptive Study

Medication error rises with an increase in physical fatigue, anxiety, and stress. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of medication error occurrence with general health and anxiety caused by Covid- 19 disease in nurses.

This descriptive study was conducted on 110 nurses of Ahvaz Imam Reza Hospital in 2020 Data collected with Goldberg 28-item General Health Questionnaire, 18-item Corona Disease Anxiety Scale, and 27-item Medication Error Questionnaire. Inclusion criteria were having at least one work shift in the past month and prescribing medication to patients. Data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation test and multiple linear regression.

The mean age of nurses was 30.10±6.09 years. The mean score of general health of nurses was 34.23±14.34, the mean score of anxiety was 13.40±9.05, and the mean score of medication error was 39.58±16.69. Medication error increased as general health decreased and Covid-19 anxiety score increased (p<0.05). The results of the multiple linear regression model showed that based on the coefficient of determination 41.3% of the total drug error score can be explained by the model input variables. Nurses in Covid-19 ward and with lower general health score also had higher medication error (p<0.001 and p=0.026, respectively).

The association of exposure to Covid-19 patient, decreased general health, and increased anxiety caused by Covid-19 disease with the increase in the incidence of medication error in nurses requires the attention of managers to plan for measures to improve health and reduce nurses' anxiety, and needs to be considered in critical situations.