On Sunday, TV 2 told about 85-year-old Tove Skari, who died of an overdose of the potent drug Methotrexate while she was admitted to the Radium Hospital.
Pharmacist Alma Mulac has written a doctorate on medication errors in Norwegian hospitals.
In her research, it emerges that almost 200 patients were seriously injured after incorrect medication in Norwegian hospitals in 2016 and 2017.
– This is a big problem, based on our findings, says Alma Mulac to TV 2.
– Could have been avoided
According to her research, poor quality systems and a lack of safety barriers are the cause of most cases of medication errors.
She believes that better prevention could have ensured that the case with Tove Skari was avoided.
– That mistake could have been avoided if there was a quality assurance of all the prescriptions when the patient was admitted to the hospital.
POTENT: Methotrexate is a very potent drug. Photo: Kristin Grønning / TV 2
This will become a growing problem, the researcher believes. Among other things, she points out that Norwegians are getting older and older.
– We have several medicines on the market, we live with many chronic diseases which we treat with many medicines at the same time. And on top of this, a lot of new technology is being implemented. All this is going to make patient safety an increasing challenge in the time to come, says Mulac.
RESEARCHER: Alma Mulak has written a doctorate on medication errors in Norwegian hospitals. Photo: Magnus Nøkland/ TV 2
She believes that a lot of good things can happen for safety with new technology, but that changed working methods can also lead to new problems that have not been known before.
Drug-related injury is the most common cause of patient injury. The figure for 2021 is the highest since 2015. It appears in the Norwegian Directorate of Health’s latest report on patient injuries.
No national overview
From 2012 to 2019, most medication errors were reported in the reporting system. In the time before and after this, it has been difficult to map the extent of these events.
– It is a shame that the reporting system was discontinued. Now we do not have a comprehensive national overview of incorrect medication at the hospitals. But all deviations and errors are reported at a regional level, which means that you can work with deviations under each hospital or the health institutions, says the researcher.
Alma Mulac now hopes that medication errors in the health sector will receive more attention in the future.
– It is quite clear that systematic work is needed with deviation management and this should be worked on more, says the researcher.
