Building a culture of medicine safety

Thursday, May 17.

Building a culture of medicine safety

A culture of safety around medicines and reducing medication errors are two of the key themes for a two-day workshop in Wellington this week.

The workshop, Medicines and the Patient Experience - Practical Solutions, is a collaboration between PHARMAC, the Safe and Quality Use of Medicines Group, the Ministry of Health, ACC and BPAC. It involves government agencies, health professionals and consumers examining ways to ensure that safety considerations underpin patient care with medicines.

Local and international speakers bring different perspectives to the workshop. They include David U (Eds note: David U is his full name), President and CEO of the Institute of Safe Medications practices, Canada and Associate Professor Andrea Mant from the School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of New South Wales, Australia.

National speakers include Les Toop, Head of Department of Public Health and General Practice, Christchurch, Dr Michael Tatley, Director of the NZ Pharmacovigilance Centre, Dr Mary Seddon, Head of Quality Improvement at Middlemore hospital and Dr Bruce Andersen, Manager, Governance, DHB Funding and performance directorate.

PHARMAC Medical Director Dr Peter Moodie says that while recent headlines have brought the issue of optimal use of medicines and medicines safety into sharp focus, work on improvements to medicines management is ongoing.

“This has been a high profile issue in recent weeks, and what is sometimes overlooked is that health professionals and care agencies are always looking for ways to improve patient safety with medicines. These issues reflect our view that there is much to be gained from using the medicines we have, better.”

“It is extremely positive to see consumers and health professionals meeting to look at some practical ways to ensure that medicines are used safely and optimally.”

The key themes for the workshop include:

 Medicines and the patient experience
 Practical solutions, sharing innovation and models of care
 How do we build a culture of safety?

The workshop aims to identify practical solutions for safe and quality use of medicines through a focus on the patient experience.
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Dr Moodie says patients should be involved in, and at the centre of all prescribing decisions, and medicines management is a collaboration.

Kevin Hague, Chief Executive of West Coast DHB says lessons learned from recent high profile cases need to be taken on board by the entire health sector. Kevin Hague chairs the national Safe and Quality Use of Medicines (SQM) Group, a District Health Boards initiative that aims to identify ways to improve the quality use of medicines and reduce medication errors.

“We need to keep working towards a culture of safety in all aspects of medical care,” he says. “This workshop is a great opportunity for us to share innovative solutions to these problems and to learn from our international colleagues.”

“We want to use this workshop as a forum to guide the ongoing work of the Safe and Quality Use of Medicines group and to give people confidence in the treatment that they receive.”

The workshop is to be opened by the Hon Peter Dunne, Associate Minister of Health, who is currently leading the development of the National Medicines Strategy.

“It is very pleasing to see a diverse group of people coming together to discuss and debate medicines safety,” Mr Dunne says. “This workshop is an ideal place and time to focus on the patient and to co-ordinate, talk, build relationships, share knowledge and information, so that our health system can support the best possible health gain through the optimal use of medicines.”

“Optimal use means ensuring that choices about medicines, how the system delivers medicines and how individuals use medicines are safe and result in the best possible health gain.”

“I look forward to this workshop identifying practical solutions for safe and quality use of medicines in healthcare, and even greater efforts being made to improve the patient experience.”

The two day workshop, at Te Papa, will open at 6.30pm on 16 May 2007.

ENDS

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