NICU Medication Errors: Describing the Cause and Nature of Medication Errors in a NICU in Qatar

Introduction A medication error can be defined as “any error occurring in the medication use process” and focuses on problems with the delivery of medication to a patient [1]. Medication errors are a complex and ongoing issue that are of concern in all health care institutions [1]. Such errors range in severity but have been associated with an increased mortality and morbidity rate, as well as resulting in significant health care cost for both adult and pediatric populations [2,3]. Evidence from the literature indicates that more complex medical problems in patients who require multiple medications are more likely to experience medication errors during their hospitalization [3,4]. Since the release of the report “To err is human” by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) in 1999, the importance of good patient safety management has become a major focus of many health care professionals throughout the world [2]. Neonates, as a population, do not appear at a particularly high risk of experiencing medication errors...