Oconee Medical Center eliminates five rights-related medication errors with IntelliDOT Bedside Medication Administration(TM)

Integrates With McKesson HIS and McKesson Star Pharmacy System

Published: 11/06/2008

SAN DIEGO, CA, USA - (HealthTech Wire / News) - IntelliDOT Corporation, a leading provider of wireless, handheld barcode point-of-care (BPOC) solutions to hospitals, today announced that Oconee Medical Center, a 169-bed facility in Seneca, SC, has eliminated all serious five rights-related medication administration errors as a result of implementing IntelliDOT Bedside Medication Administration (IntelliDOT BMA™).

The IntelliDOT System is a best-of-breed wireless, workflow manager that connects caregivers with the information systems they need at the point-of-care. Designed by nurses for nurses, the IntelliDOT System enables clinicians to perform safety checks and safely administer and document medications at the bedside using a lightweight, handheld device. The IntelliDOT System satisfies Joint Commission standards for patient identification and assures accuracy by verifying the five rights of medication administration: right medication, right dose, right route, right patient, right time; as well as ensuring required follow-up documentation, such as pain scale, is performed in a timely manner and accurately recorded.

"Oconee Medical Center illustrates the flexibility of the IntelliDOT System to successfully integrate with any HIS and pharmacy system," said Thomas G. Klopack, president and CEO of IntelliDOT. "Most importantly, the IntelliDOT System is helping Oconee Medical Center reach its goal of eliminating all serious five rights-related errors, all the way from the pharmacy to the patient's bedside."

The IntelliDOT System at Oconee Medical Center interfaces with the hospital's McKesson hospital information system (HIS) and McKesson Star pharmacy system. The pharmacist enters and verifies the orders into the McKesson HIS. Once this step is complete, orders are displayed on the medication dispensing cabinet profile and in the IntelliDOT System. The nurse then verifies the pharmacy interpretation of the order in IntelliDOT against the order as written by the physician. During bedside administration, the nurse scans the patient wristband, medications, and responds to the prompts. Once completed, the data is automatically sent from the IntelliDOT handheld device to the IntelliDOT electronic medication administration record (eMAR).

"The implementation of the IntelliDOT System was the best I've ever been through," said Bill Stevenson, Director of Pharmacy, Oconee Medical Center. "Most of all, the IntelliDOT System definitely eliminates medication errors. If you follow the prompts, the IntelliDOT System won't let you give the wrong medication or give it to the wrong person."

The results of medication administration observations both pre- and post-IntelliDOT BMA implementation show that Oconee Medical Center has reduced five rights-related errors (wrong patient or wrong medication) to zero. In addition, by automating the medication administration process with IntelliDOT BMA, nurses rarely need to contact the pharmacy with questions. As a result, the Oconee Medical Center pharmacy has cut order turnaround time in half -- from a maximum of approximately 30-33 minutes to approximately 15-18 minutes or less.

To extend enhanced patient safety to the lab, Oconee Medical Center is now preparing to implement IntelliDOT Phlebotomy Specimen Collection™, which also operates on the same handheld device.