Safety use of medication in critical care patients: integrative literature review

Abstract

Background: the critically ill patient is particularly vulnerable to medication-related incidents, due to the high complexity of care. Aims: analyze the nursing interventions that promote medication safety in critical care patients. Methodology: integrative review on four data-bases, PubMed, EBSCO, Scielo and B-On. Nine articles were included. Results: medication safety is considered a major quality indicator in healthcare organizations. Implementing a safety culture is important, since it recognizes that highly risk interventions are performed and error is inevitable. The complexity of care in critically ill patients implies a vulnerable condition, where multiple medications are needed, which when associated with stress and poor nurse-patient ratio, can result in medication errors. The healthcare team should be aware of all stages of medication; therefore, communication is essencial in medication safety. Conclusion: the nursing team, as key-elements of care delivery in critically ill patients, have an important role in medication safety. Therefore, the process of preventing errors is a considerate challenge, requiring evaluation and monitoring thorough. The nursing team has to guarantee a safe efficient and focused care for the patient and family.