What was the medication error rate based on the survey findings?
Understand the Problem
The question is asking to calculate the medication error rate based on the number of errors observed during the survey compared to the total number of scheduled doses. To find the error rate, we identify the total errors and divide by the number of administered doses, then convert that into a percentage.
Answer
The medication error rate is $5\%$.
Answer for screen readers
The medication error rate is $5%$.
Steps to Solve
- Identify the number of errors and scheduled doses
First, determine the total number of medication errors observed during the survey and the total number of scheduled doses. Let's say in this example there were 5 errors and 100 scheduled doses.
- Calculate the error rate
To find the error rate, divide the total number of errors by the total number of scheduled doses.
In our example, this would look like:
$$ \text{Error Rate} = \frac{\text{Total Errors}}{\text{Total Scheduled Doses}} $$
So we substitute the numbers:
$$ \text{Error Rate} = \frac{5}{100} $$
- Convert to Percentage
To express the error rate as a percentage, multiply the result by 100:
$$ \text{Error Rate Percentage} = \text{Error Rate} \times 100 $$
So we calculate:
$$ \text{Error Rate Percentage} = \frac{5}{100} \times 100 = 5% $$
The medication error rate is $5%$.
More Information
The medication error rate is an important metric in healthcare, indicating the frequency of errors in medication administration. Monitoring this rate helps improve patient safety and medication practices.
Tips
- Confusing the total doses with administered doses: Ensure you're using the correct figure for scheduled doses.
- Not converting to a percentage: It's vital to multiply the decimal error rate by 100 for percentage representation.
