The PSIP Approach to Account for Human Factors in Adverse Drug Events: Preliminary Field Studies

This paper presents a preliminary contribution of a Human Factors (HF) approach to prevention of Adverse Drug Events (ADEs), developed within the European research project Patient Safety through Intelligent Procedures in medication (PSIP). Following an introduction on the role and relevance of HF in ADEs prevention, a number of systemic weaknesses encountered during the field activity analysis are presented and discussed. Semi-structured interviews and observations of medication cycle activities led to infer potential unreliability of some decision-making and drug administration procedures. In particular, the usage of current electronic support systems emerged as a crucial related element. These findings represent an initial contribution which will be further developed within PSIP, as HF have been recognised fundamental contributors to ADEs epidemiological knowledge and appropriate prevention.