Epic will eventually control IV workflow management

Pulling another article from the notebook archive, penned March 20, 2020. I have seen the future of IV workflow management systems (IVWFMS). Spoiler alert, EPIC wins. And before people start calling me an Epic fanboy, I should make it clear that I do not like Epic, as a company or a product. I believe healthcare … Read more

IV workflow management systems and workarounds

A large portion of the most recent issue of the ISMP Medication Safety Alert is dedicated to IV workflow management systems (IVWFM) and errors caused by workarounds. There are a few head-scratchers in the list to be sure. There are even some that had me speculating their authenticity, i.e. too wacky to believe. “Data submitted … Read more

Nonadherence to diabetes medications costly

This is follow-up commentary to an article I Tweeted about earlier this week. JCP: “[Express Scripts] found that patients who were adherent to oral diabetes drugs had 235 fewer emergency department visits and 50 fewer inpatient hospitalizations per 1000 patients, resulting in an average of $500 saved per patients and a total decrease of $210 … Read more

Does tall man lettering work?

First of all, is it tall man, tall-man, or tallman? And why is it called “tall man lettering” when none of the letters are actually taller than the others? Heck if I know. Just more questions in a mountain of questions piling up around tallMAN lettering. Pharmacy Practice News: “[The study] found that there hasn’t been a substantial … Read more

Microneedle patch for monitoring drug levels

Medgadget: “A collaboration between researchers at the University of British Columbia and Paul Scherrer Institut in Switzerland has developed a microneedle device for drug monitoring. The device is in a form of a patch that’s stuck onto the skin, painlessly pushing microneedles through to sample the interstitial fluid…The proof-of-concept device reported by the team was … Read more

Cool technology for pharmacy – ProteXsure Safety Capsule System

Needle sticks happen. I’ve actually stuck myself a few times during my career while compounding in the IV room. Fortunately for me, it never involved anything hazardous. Still, it was a pain. No pun intended. Over the years a lot of attention has been given to methods for preventing needle sticks in healthcare, ranging from things … Read more

Witnessing errors in the iv room

I spent a short time observing iv preparation in two separate, distinctly different pharmacy environments in the weeks leading up to the new year. One was a traditional iv room in a large acute care pharmacy with multiple pharmacy technicians and pharmacists putting out hundreds of compounded sterile preparations (CSPs) per day. The second was … Read more

Initial reaction to FDA stance on syringes as standalone storage container

This morning I woke to the news that No Syringe Is Approved as a Standalone Storage Container, FDA Says. This I’m sure is in response to the recent issue with BD syringes and drug stability. I need to think about this more, but my gut reaction is that this is huge and will have a … Read more

Pros and cons of IV workflow management systems

Pondering the need for an IV workflow management system (IVWMS)? You’re not alone if you are. According the most recent PP&P State of Pharmacy Automation Survey, 15% of facilities have already implemented something and another 29% plan to do so in the next few years. The only surprise is the relatively low percentage of facilities planning on implementation in the near future.

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