Medication safety initiatives to improve patient care quality and safety at Duke include:

Antibiotic prescribing tools are used by physicians to prescribe the appropriate medicines to treat existing infections and prevent surgical infections. For example, in 2006 the Durham Regional Hospital Surgical Care Improvement Project Team introduced the Perioperative Antibiotic Order Sheet, which lists recommended antibiotics by surgery type.

Computerized comparison tools evaluate a patient’s medication use, lab results and the combination of both in order to look for potential adverse drug events.

Evaluation and modification of core information stored in drug-infusion devices ensures that patients are receiving the proper drug choice and dosage for their condition. Once a quarter, representatives from anesthesia, pharmacy, and nursing at Duke Raleigh Hospital meet to evaluate and refine the data stored in the devices, which results in more accurate dosing and fewer alarms from the devices. 

Standardizing the medical transcription process allows staff to cross-reference medication orders in a number of different places helps the nurses and medical staff catch many errors related to dictation and transcription.