Medication Safety Practices at Colombo South Teaching Hospital
Abstract
Background: Medication safety is a cornerstone of patient safety and healthcare quality. Colombo South Teaching Hospital [CSTH] implemented comprehensive strategies in line with WHO’s global challenge “Medication Without Harm” to reduce preventable medication-related harm, while promoting multidisciplinary collaboration and patient engagement [1,2,5].Objectives: To describe CSTH’s medication safety initiatives, including management of high-alert and look-alike/sound-alike (LASA) medications, introduction of digital prescribing, staff and patient education programs, and the establishment of the Medication Safety Steering Committee. Additionally, to demonstrate how these practices can serve as a model for other hospitals implementing WHO-aligned patient safety strategies [1,7].Methods: A Medication Safety Committee guided multidisciplinary actions involving doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and IT staff. Key interventions included auditing prescriptions, introducing electronic prescribing through the Hospital Information Management System (HIMS), separate storage and labelling of high-alert medications, and continuous staff and patient education. Audit findings and competition outcomes were used to assess compliance and identify areas for improvement [3,5].Results: Enhanced awareness and adherence to safe medication practices, improved interdepartmental collaboration, reduction in medication-related errors, establishment of standardized procedures for high-alert and LASA medications, and recognition of CSTH as the national demonstration hospital for medication safety by the Ministry of Health [1,7]. Units participated actively in competitions, leading to sustained motivation for safety practices and continuous quality improvement [5,6].Conclusion: CSTH’s model demonstrates practical implementation of WHO-aligned patient safety strategies, enhanced multidisciplinary collaboration, and serves as a benchmark for hospitals across Sri Lanka aiming to operationalize national medication safety initiatives [1,7,9].