Rates of Accidental Medication Overdoses in the Home Rapidly Increasing
The number of fatal medication errors occuring in people's homes has risen dramatically in recent years, particularly in those situations where alcohol or street drugs are also involved. The finding is the result of research published in a recent edition of the Archives of Internal Medicine. Authors of the study note that the number of years of potential life lost due to these home-based medication errors is likely greater than the number of years of life lost from all other accidents combined -- including falls and automobile accidents.
According to researchers, the shift in fatal overdoses has been away from inpatient settings to outpatient settings and private homes. They also note that increasing numbers of medications are taken outside of the hospital or clinic with much less oversight from healthcare professionals, and that medications once available only by prescription are increasingly available as over-the-counter drugs.
Until recently, little research on medication errors has focused on errors which occur outside hospitals or medical centers.
Authors of this latest study report that almost 50 million death certificates were filed in the United States between Jan. 1, 1983, and Dec. 31, 2004, and that 224,355 of those involved fatal medication errors. A detailed review of these documents revealed that the overall death rate from fatal medical errors increased by more than 360% during the two-decade period.
Perhaps most significantly, those fatal errors occurring at home and combined with alcohol or street drugs increased by nearly 3,200%. Fatal errors that did not happen at home and did not involve alcohol or street drugs increased by only 5%. The increases were particularly pronounced among people aged 40 to 59.
Researchers note that it is not always possible in a home-based setting to determine exactly what substances patients might be consuming along with their prescription medications. They also recommend that healthcare professionals spend more time educating patients about the risks of taking medicines, particularly in conjunction with alcohol and/or street drugs.
Previously on the DC Metro Area Medical Malpractice Law Blog, we have posted articles related to:
- How medication errors add billions of dollars to U.S. healthcare costs
- Evidence that risky pharmacy practices often contribute to medication errors
- Drive-through pharmacy windows: Convenience at the expense of safety
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