The NHS published its new Patient Safety Strategy earlier this week, which included plans to develop a Medicines Safety Improvement Programme to improve the administration of high-risk treatments.
On Tuesday, July 2nd, the new Patient Safety Strategy was revealed to the public, with the NHS stating it hopes it will help to save an extra 1,000 lives and cut £100 million from healthcare budgets every year from 2023-24.
The report states: “People too often fear blame and close ranks, losing sight of the need to improve. More can be done to share safety insight and empower people – patients and staff – with the skills, confidence and mechanisms to improve safety.”
It went on to estimate savings of £750 million per year by 2025 could be possible by reducing claims provision.
One of the biggest changes to the strategy will be the launch of the Medicines Safety Improvement Programme that aims to make high-risk prescriptions far safer for patients to take.
To do this, the NHS will train pharmacists better so they can have the knowledge to assist patients taking opioids, as well as those with atrial fibrillation on anticoagulants. It also sets out the importance of improving the transition of patients on anticoagulants from hospitals to care homes.
Regular medical reviews will also take place to improve the administration of drugs, and structured reviews will be implemented for those on several prescriptions.
Claire Anderson, chair of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) in England, welcomed the report and emphasised the importance of reducing medication abuse to provide better care for patients.
“As experts in medicines, pharmacists will be at the heart of this work, including supporting shared decision-making with patients, medicines reviews, and reducing problematic poly-pharmacy,” Ms Anderson stated.
She went on to say there should be pharmacists embedded throughout the NHS who have the appropriate training and education.
“In this way, patients and NHS colleagues can benefit from pharmacists’ expertise in all care settings,” the RHS chair commented.
The Patient Safety Strategy also commits the NHS to use digital technologies to support learning; replacing the National Reporting and Learning System with a new version; and introducing the Patient Safety Incident Response Framework, which it hopes will improve the investigation into incidents.
Additionally, deaths will be better scrutinised thanks to a new medical examiner system; a Mental Health Safety Improvement Programme will also be delivered; and the NHS will aim to reduce stillbirth, neonatal and maternal death and neonatal asphyxial brain injury by 50 per cent by 2025.
As well as these procedural changes, Ms Anderson stated that patient safety could be improved if the NHS encourages a culture that allows people to report errors and learn from their mistakes.
“We welcomed the introduction of a new criminal defence around inadvertent dispensing errors in registered pharmacies. We now look to the government to urgently move forwards and provide a similar defence for pharmacists working in hospitals and other settings,” she added.
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