Author: Eidan S E H S Alrasheid
Alrasheid, Eidan S E H S, 2020 The barriers to reporting medication administration errors for registered nurses in Kuwait, Flinders University, College of Nursing and Health Sciences
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Background: Medication administration errors (MAEs) represent the most prevalent type of medical error. MAEs can have a major impact on the safety and quality of health care received by patients, and there is evidence to suggest that their occurrence is increasing. Therefore, improving and protecting patient safety can be facilitated by a clearer understanding of MAEs, including the possible elements that may affect health professionals’ readiness to report such errors. The purpose of this study is to identify and explore the barriers that prevent nurses from reporting MAEs in Kuwait.
Aims: To identify and understand the key barriers that prevent MAEs from being reported by nurses in general hospitals in Kuwait.
Methods: Data were collected via an online survey from registered nurses (RNs) in two major public hospitals in Kuwait. The structured survey collected data on demographics and the nurses’ backgrounds, the nurses’ perceptions of reporting MAEs, and potential barriers to reporting MAEs. A total of 550 completed surveys were collected. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.0 was used to analyse the data. The data was examined to ensure it met the distribution, skewness and assumptions for using a Pearson Correlation. Pearson correlation coefficient analyses were used to examine the relationship between variables.
Results: The study shows that RNs were willing to report MAEs in hospitals in Kuwait. The study also found that RNs reported a fear of being punished due to MAEs, and that hospital administrators (Head Nurse, Nursing Directors, Hospital Directors) contributed to a negative work culture, which further impacted on the reporting of MAEs in Kuwait.
Conclusion: The majority of RNs from the two sample hospitals in Kuwait acknowledged the need to report MAEs. Nevertheless, fear of being punished or blamed, and the negative attitude of nursing administration towards RNs that reported MAE remain the potential barriers to reporting MAEs in Kuwait.
Keywords: medication administration, medication errors, patient safety, Kuwaiti nurses, report incident, nursing barriers, medication error reporting, nursing medication errors, nursing reporting, nursing errors.
Subject: Nursing thesis
Thesis type: Masters
Completed: 2020
School: College of Nursing and Health Sciences
Supervisor: Dr Yvonne parry