Roles of the Pharmacist and Technician in Reported Medication Errors

As pharmacists and technicians take on expanded roles in patient care through collaborative practice agreements and disease state management programs, the liability for potential medication errors and the role of the technician in such liability need to be taken into account. Useful risk management techniques for both the pharmacist and technician were highlighted at this conference.^[8] Medication errors historically have been the primary responsibility of the pharmacist. However, with the current shortage of pharmacists, the technician is beginning to assume added responsibility for medication error detection and reporting.

The USP MER program tracks errors on a system basis and uses the information to suggest revisions of current drug standards or to implement new requirements for drug products and packaging and/or labeling in order to prevent future errors from occurring. The USP medication use process includes the following: prescribing, documenting, dispensing, administering, and monitoring. The MER program provides the ability to share components of the process, analyze weaknesses, and place safety nets that will catch errors before they occur.