The Wellbeing Services County of Satakunta extends the use of Medanets mobile solutions to improve medication safety
Documentation requirements are tightening in pharmacotherapy and meeting them with traditional methods has become difficult. During 2024, the Wellbeing Services County of Satakunta, Finland, has implemented several new policies and solutions that improve medication safety.
Transitioning to digital systems and procedures is the first step towards safer pharmacotherapy. Anu Heikkilä, Medication Safety Expert at the Wellbeing Services County of Satakunta, says that they still often print medication lists. Medication errors can occur if changes are made to the medication list and the new version is not printed out. In Heikkilä’s view, digital medication lists are the preferred option for medication safety: „When medication lists are mainly handled digitally, this reduces manual work phases and data transfer risks,“ she points out.
In order to inspect the patient’s medication and make administration entries smoothly in the patient’s presence, EHR systems must be complemented with solutions that can be carried along by the nurses. For this reason, the Wellbeing Services County of Satakunta decided to extend the Medanets mobile solution for nursing, which it had implemented in 2015, to also cover its pharmacotherapy process needs.
Up-to-date medication data always at hand
„Documentation requirements are tightening in pharmacotherapy and meeting them with traditional methods has become difficult. The opportunity to document the medication administered to the patient on a mobile device, in addition to the computer, facilitates the updating of medication data,“ says Johanna Hakala, Head Nurse of surgery ward 3 at the Wellbeing Services County of Satakunta.
Hakala points out that the new practice has required changing processes, from redefining policies to reshaping ways of thinking. „At surgical ward 3, we started using the Medanets solution actively right away, and we have been extremely satisfied with it,“ Hakala says.
In addition to surgical ward 3, eleven other wards in Satakunta have implemented the solution. At these wards, up-to-date medication records are always at hand.
Mobile solution helps meet stricter pharmacotherapy requirements
The current minimum requirement is that all administration entries on medications administered as needed, and on narcotic medicines, are made in the EHR system. Exceptions must also be recorded at all times. The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare already recommends making administration entries for regular medication, in particular, in specialised healthcare, supported by technical solutions. Administration entries should be made in the EHR without delay. They provide information on how the pharmacotherapy has been administered in practice.
In the future, all medication must be recorded as administered, and at least the information of the medication administered at the ward that is relevant in outpatient care must appear on the national list of medications. 1,2 Without the mobile solution, the increase in the number of entries would, in practice, mean spending more time at the computer.
1. THL (2020): Lääkehoidon tiedonhallinnon konsepti. Accessed on 13 May 2024.
2. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (2021): Turvallisen lääkehoidon opas. Accessed on 13 May 2024.
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