Pharmacy and Pharmacology
Provides resources, strategies, and information on conducting research in pharmacy & pharmacology.
Patient Safety Resources for Pharmacy
On this page, you can find resources on patient safety that are specific to pharmacy. For a broader list of topics, please visit the Patient Safety research guide.
Fact Sheets & Tools
- Explicit and Standardized Prescription Medicine InstructionsTested instructions for pills that follow the Universal Medication Schedule (UMS), which simplifies complex medicine regimens by using standard time periods for administration. From AHRQ.
- Antibiotic Resistance & Patient Safety PortalAn interactive web-based application created to display data collected through CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), the Antibiotic Resistance Laboratory Network (AR Lab Network), & other sources.
- AHRQ Innovations Exchange - medicationsFind a variety of programs & toolkits, including Innovations in Medication Therapy Management, Medication Management & Access, & Medication Management
- ISMP Medication Safety Best PracticesSix 2014-15 Targeted Medication Safety Best Practices for hospitals issued by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP).
- MARQUIS - Multi-Center Medication Reconciliation Quality Improvement Study ToolkitMedication reconciliation tools to reduce medication errors that frequently occur during care transitions & implementation manual.
- Surveillance Reporting for Enrolled Facilities - National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN)Includes surveillance methods to identify and track a variety of patient safety issues, such as device-associated infections & those associated with medications. From the CDC.
Search Terms to Use in Databases
Search terms will vary, depending on the database you are using. Below is a list of useful terms, with PubMed's MeSH terms noted. Be prepared to use synonyms in your searches, as patient safety as a concept is relatively new to the literature.
- Accident Prevention [MeSH]
- Checklist [MeSH, added 2010]
- Disclosure [MeSH]
- drug error
- Iatrogenic Disease [MeSH]
- Inappropriate Prescribing [MeSH]
- Liability [MeSH]
- Malpractice [MeSH]
- Medication Errors [MeSH]
- Medication Reconciliation [MeSH]
- patient AND safety
- Safety Management [MeSH]
- Risk Management [MeSH}
- Truth Disclosure [MeSH]
Featured Resource
AHRQ features three programs that used pharmacists in various ways to provide medication therapy management services to patients in different settings. One of the featured profiles describes an innovation that is being adapted and implemented by participants of the Medication Therapy Management Learning Community.
Organizations
- Food and Drug Administration (FDA)See especially the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) and Center for Drug Evaluation & Research (CDER).
- Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)Includes Medication Reconciliation to Prevent Adverse Drug Events; also search site using terms such as "medication", "adverse drug event", or pharmacist".