• E-mail
• Print
• RSS

Case managers play role in reducing medical errors

Case Management Weekly, March 29, 2006

Want to receive articles like this one in your inbox? Subscribe to Case Management Weekly!

Twelve percent of patients experience an adverse drug event within two weeks of a hospital discharge, according to a study cited by the Massachusetts Coalition for the Prevention of Medical Errors. Eric Alper, MD, patient safety officer at the University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, believes case managers play an integral role in reducing errors during discharge time.

According to Alper, case mangers frequently have the opportunity to review the discharge medication list and instructions after the physicians have completed them. The savvy case manager double checks a list for accuracy, and ensures an effective hand-off in which all necessary documentation accompanies the patient and is forwarded to the primary-care physician.

Additionally, some hospitals have implemented a policy in which case managers call patients within three days of discharge to check whether they are experiencing problems or have questions about their medications.

Source: Case Management Monthly, March, 2006, HCPro, Inc

Want to receive articles like this one in your inbox? Subscribe to Case Management Weekly!

• E-mail to a Colleague
• Print
• RSS
• Archive