Study Finds Electronic Medication Administration Reduces Errors

A study in the May 6 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine finds bar code technology used with an electronic medication administration record (eMAR) system significantly reduces transcription and medication administration errors.

Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston conducted the study, funded through a grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Researchers compared 6,723 medication administrations on hospital units before bar-coded eMAR was introduced with 7,318 administrations using the technology.

Observers noted 776 non-timing errors in medication administration on units that did not use the bar-code eMAR (an 11.5% error rate) versus 495 such errors on units that did use it (a 6.8% error rate) — a 41.4% relative reduction in errors (P<0.001). The rate of potential adverse drug events (other than those associated with timing errors) fell from 3.1% without the use of the bar-code eMAR to 1.6% with its use, representing a 50.8% relative reduction (P<0.001). The rate of timing errors in medication administration fell by 27.3% (P<0.001), but the rate of potential adverse drug events associated with timing errors did not change significantly. Transcription errors occurred at a rate of 6.1% on units that did not use the bar-code eMAR but were completely eliminated on units that did use it.


Use of the bar-code eMAR substantially reduced the rate of errors in order transcription and in medication administration as well as potential adverse drug events, although it did not eliminate such errors. Data showed that the bar-code eMAR is an important intervention to improve medication safety.