The collaboration reduces manual selection and fewer interruptions which should lead to the reduced risk of selection errors, and more time for direct patient care.
Ljubljana-based Better Meds and US medtech firm BD have partnered to improve medication management through automated dispensing cabinets. The collaboration will involve integrating BD automated dispensing cabinets on hospital wards at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust.
Hospitals increasingly rely on electronic prescribing and medicines administration systems (ePMA) to streamline medication prescribing and administration. Retrieving the correct medications from storage, however, often remains a manual process for nurses, which can introduce delays and errors.
By integrating Better Meds ePMA with BD’s automated dispensing cabinets, medication prescriptions will be automatically transmitted which reduces manual selection and ensures a more patient-centric approach.
“We are reducing the manual steps involved in medication administration, giving nurses quicker and safer access to prescribed medications,” said Better Meds product director Božidarka Radović.
“This means fewer interruptions, reduced risk of selection errors, and more time for direct patient care,” she added.
Greater accuracy
This integration will be implemented at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust to help controlled medication management within hospital wards. Prescribers and pharmacists will continue their existing workflows in Better Meds, with all prescription updates automatically reflected in BD’s system.
The medication retrieval process will be simplified which should ensure greater accuracy and reduce the risk of missed or duplicate doses.
“Unlocking data flows through successful interoperability between systems ensures seamless medication handling processes for the nursing staff, from patient-specific selection of medicines to assurance of maintaining medication safety to the point of medicine administration,” said Nancy West, director at MMS BD.
“This ensures the five rights of medicines administration: right person, right medicine, right dose, right route, right time,” she continued.
