case matches the amount used or wasted.
Automation provides a more complete and detailed tracking of
medication movement than the manual tracking of controlled sub-
stances, but no system, even a high-tech one, is failsafe in eliminat-
ing all risks for diversion. Luckily, there are steps you can take to
7 2 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • O C T O B E R 2 0 1 8
If your facility is forced to reach
out to unfamiliar compounding
pharmacies to obtain critical
medications that are in short
supply, be sure to doublecheck
the labels on the syringes you
receive. The Institute for Safe
Medication Practices (ISMP) says facilities have reported receiv-
ing syringes of succinylcholine with strengths of the drug noted
two different ways, which increases the risk of administering the
wrong dose. Another facility received fentanyl and hydromor-
phone syringes affixed with the same color tamper-proof cap,
according to ISMP. The drugs' names were correctly noted in the
syringes' preprinted labels, but the similar looking caps could
have caused providers to mix up the drugs at the sterile field.
The FDA does not mandate that compounding pharmacies use
standardized labeling on the drugs they make, but ISMP officials
are lobbying to require that compounders follow the same label-
ing standards that apply to commercial drug manufacturers.
— Outpatient Surgery Editors
Drug Shortages
Raise Safety Concerns
• SECOND LOOK Make sure the syringes received from
compounding pharmacies contain the medication you
intend to use.
COMPOUNDING PHARMACIES
