Medication Reconciliation Reflection
Medication reconciliation is an essential safety task that nurses often get to complete for their patients, and this allows for their interprofessional team to be aware of medications that they are prescribed as well as over-the-counter medications that they use. The Joint Commission has published National Patient Safety Goals to regulate a safe method of gathering all of the information for patients and help develop a regularized method to do so. The process of a medication reconciliation entails comparing “the medications a patient should be using (and is actually using) to the new medications that are ordered for the patient and resolves any discrepancies” (The Joint Commission, 2020). Completing this process accurately will allow for clear communication to both the providers and the patient on how to safely administer medications and also know the purpose behind their uses as related to the individual. According to the section 03.06.01, the fifth goal highlights discharge instructions on medication usage as well as informs on when to notify the provider when medications are discontinued and added or changed. This aspect of the patient safety goal aligns with the Medication Reconciliation I performed for KL, as her medications included one over-the-counter medication that had the same use as one that was prescribed for her allergies. This individual is allergic to dust and animal fur and also lives with two cats so there is an abundance of allergens which forces KL to utilize both her prescribed ProAir as well as OTC Allegra to combat the allergies. When visiting with her provider it is essential to let them know about her additional medication to have on file in the case of ever adding another medication to be aware of possible interactions. Through this project, I learned how to utilize outside sources such as UpToDate and drugs.com for their drug interaction checker which not only pointed out drug-drug interactions but also drug-food interactions to be aware of. KL feels that she can easily access her medications and is well educated on what to expect as possible side effects.
References
The Joint Commission. (2020, March 26). National Patient Safety Goals Effective July 2020 for the Hospital Program[PDF]. The Joint Commission.
