Patient safety

‘Every minute counts’: taking a national approach to time-critical medicines

Despite various initiatives to tackle the problem, safety incidents linked to the late administration of medicines, or medicines that have been omitted entirely, have remained stubbornly high for decades. A national focus may finally deliver a solution.…

Safety first: delivering trans-inclusive care is everyone’s responsibility

The quality of trans-inclusive care is lagging behind other population groups, says Stewart O’Callaghan, chief executive and founder of OUTpatients, who lays out the challenges and necessary changes needed to remedy this issue.…

Problems with diabetes monitoring devices are potentially being underreported, says MHRA

The regulator has urged people to speak to a healthcare professional if they have concerns that their health may have been impacted by an issue with their device.…

Nitazenes linked to 179 deaths in 12 months, government data show

According to data analysis by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, protonitazene was linked to the most reported deaths — 73 out of 179.…

Pharmacy teams advised to produce ready-to-administer oxytocin infusions for maternity services

Required oxytocin infusions will now need to be prepared at the time of the event, prompting concerns this will add pressure to already stretched maternity services.…

Pharmacy regulator to require ‘two-way communication’ in new draft guidance

In its latest guidance, the regulator has expanded the list of medicines for which additional safeguards should be in place for online pharmacies.…

Pharmacists made 150,000 patient interventions during anticoagulant safety audits, report finds

The results of the two national audits revealed a significant increase in patients with a yellow anticoagulant alert card, from 66.5% in 2021/2023 to 73.3% in 2023/2024.…

Reflective practice for pharmacist prescribers

How reflection can be used as a tool for improving prescribing practice.…

Understanding human factors in patient safety when prescribing

How human factors can help in developing safe prescribing practices and reduce error risk.…

Men taking valproate advised by MHRA to use effective contraception

The regulator advises that males and their partners should use effective contraception during, and for at least three months after, valproate treatment.…