Posts in High-Alert Medications

Use this list to determine which medications require special safeguards to reduce the risk of errors and minimize harm.

In our August 10, 2006 newsletter, we highlighted the well-known, caustic effects of promethazine and suggested ways to reduce the risk of serious tissue injuries and amputations from inadvertent arterial injection or IV extravasation. This topic evoked considerable response from the media and...

In our January 11, 2007 newsletter, we announced our 2007 New Year's resolution to highlight for our readers key information about selected high-alert medications and how to reduce patient harm when prescribing, dispensing, and administering these drugs. We began this yearlong effort with a feature...

Problem: Have you ever watched the 1993 movie, Groundhog Day ? Bill Murray plays Phil Conners, a television news reporter who finds himself reliving the same day over and over again—a much-hated assignment covering the annual Groundhog Day event in Punxsutawney, PA. Well, at times it feels like...

This assessment offers hospitals, long-term care facilities, and outpatient facilities a unique opportunity to assess the safety of systems and practices associated with up to 11 categories of high-alert medications.

ISMP extends our thanks to more than 200 respondents consisting of pharmacists (65%), nurses (31%), and others (4%) who completed our survey on high-alert medications between May and June 2014. We sincerely appreciate your input as we update the ISMP List of High-Alert Medications for Acute Care...

The ISMP Medication Safety Self Assessment® for Oncology is designed to heighten awareness of distinguishing systems and practices related to the safe use of chemotherapy, biotherapy, and treatment-related drugs.