A Survey of the Medication Error Experiences of Pharmacy Technicians

Abstract

Background:

Little is known about pharmacy technicians and their experiences with medication errors in community pharmacies.

Objective:

To document the opinions and self-reported experiences of medication errors in a sample of community pharmacy technicians.

Methods:

A telephone survey of one self-identified pharmacy technician from each Vermont community pharmacy was conducted between August and October 2004. Surveys were administered using a standard script. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize quantitative data, and qualitative data were organized into similar categories.

Results:

Of 128 operating community pharmacies, 72 (56.3%) responded by providing a technician interview. Approximately 70% of technicians reported receiving training in medication errors. Nearly all (93.1%) respondents stated they had come into contact with prescribing errors; 62.7% of technicians cited illegible prescriptions or poor handwriting as examples. Two-thirds (66.7%) of all respondents stated they personally had detected a medication error. Only 2 (2.8%) technicians responded that they had ever completed a medication error report; both submitted the report to their corporate reporting programs.

Conclusions:

Most technicians are aware of medication errors in their practice, and the majority had personally detected errors. However, nearly one-third of technicians responded that they had never received any training in medication errors. Further research exploring pharmacy technicians' level of training, job experience, and understanding of and ability to report medication errors in a larger, more diverse sample is warranted.