Patient safety officer society supports proposed new FDA drug barcoding rule

In recognition of the impact an FDA barcode ruling could have on medication safety at thousands of American hospitals, the international Patient Safety Officer Society has issued a public statement supporting the FDA’s proposed rule on barcoding.

PSOS is a nonprofit organization devoted to helping patient safety officers succeed in their efforts to reduce preventable medical errors and enhance overall patient care safety.

“Use of barcode technology in the hospital setting has been shown to effectively reduce medication and other errors,” said PSOS President David Shulkin, MD. “We join our colleagues in supporting the FDA’s efforts to accelerate this strategy in healthcare.”

According to the FDA, at least 30 percent of medical errors resulting in death involve FDA-regulated drugs, devices, blood products, or vaccines. FDA officials believe barcode technology, used in conjunction with other information technology, will increase patient safety.

Barcoding advocates such as Mark Neuenschwander—whom the FDA has invited to testify—maintain that barcoding can minimize errors related to drug dispensing and administration through the utilization of unique machine-readable symbols on each immediate drug package. These symbols identify the drug, strength and manufacturer, as well as lot number and expiration date, explained Neuenschwander, a hospital pharmacy automation expert.

Neuenschwander—and other experts such as former Allina Health System executive John B. Grotting—advocate the use of a scanner to compare the barcode on a drug product to a specific patient's drug regimen, so that nurses can easily verify, at the point of care, that the patient is receiving the right drug, at the right dose, at the right time. A founding member of the newly formed National Alliance for Health Information Technology—which is actively promoting the new FDA barcoding rule—Grotting is president and CEO of Bridge Medical. PSOS’ first corporate member, Bridge pioneered the use of barcode technology in healthcare.

The FDA meeting will be held from 9 am to 5 pm, July 26 at the Natcher Auditorium, Building 45, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, Md. For info, visit http://www.fda.gov/oc/meetings/barcodemtg.html.

About PSOS
Headquartered in Gladwyne, Penn., the nonprofit Patient Safety Officer Society provides hospital patient safety officers with professional growth opportunities and advanced resources to lead their organizations in successful patient safety efforts. Membership is free to all patient safety officers anywhere in the world. For info, visit www.PSOS.org.

CONTACT:
PSOS, David Shulkin, 215-842-6020, patientsafetyoff@aol.com