Medication reconciliation improvement in a private psychiatric inpatient hospital

Abstract

Introduction: How to improve medication reconciliation has been an ongoing discussion in hospitals across the nation. This study was designed to identify areas for potential improvement in the medication reconciliation process for an 80-bed, inpatient psychiatric hospital. A previous evaluation conducted at the site indicated that 45% of medication reconciliations were correct. Subsequently, a new process was developed to improve this area of patient care. This process included an update to existing medication-reconciliation forms, staff education, and the standardization of all protocols involved. The investigators examined the updated process to identify gaps in patient care during the admission medication-reconciliation process. Methods: The primary outcome of the study was an assessment of the accuracy of the updated medication-reconciliation protocols. Data, including medication, dosage, route, and frequency, were collected from randomly selected patients (13 years and older) admitted during the 2-mo...