Reducing Interruptions During Med Pass

All too often nurses get interrupted during medication administration by other healthcare staff, patients and visitors. A 2012 article published by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices noted that nurses are distracted and interrupted as often as once every two minutes. To help prevent interruptions, Cleveland Clinic Marymount Hospital adopted a medication pass program that was originally implemented at the health system’s main campus.

How the med pass program works

The program was piloted in early 2015 on two medical/surgical units at Marymount Hospital. “Our nurses have a certain amount of time to pass medications,” says Stephanie Conard-Scott, BSN, RN, nurse manager of the med/surg units. “Nurses were getting interrupted by transport, pharmacy and others. They had to stop in the middle of med pass and answer questions. It was a safety issue.”

Marymount Hospital instituted the medication administration program to eliminate unnecessary interruptions. Two hours each day – from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. – are dedicated med pass times. During those times, the health unit coordinator (HUC) places a sign on the nurses’ station indicating that it is med pass time and turns on a light at the station. “When the light is on, everyone is aware that nurses are passing medications,” says Conard-Scott.

The program includes a few other components to dissuade interruptions:

• Door hangers – They read, “Medication Pass in Progress.” Nurses place them on patient doors and close the doors while administering medication.
• Red lanyards – Nurses can either wear the lanyards or put them on their workstation on wheels while med pass is in progress.
• Red zone – The floor in front of the Pyxis MedStation® is outlined in red tape. When a nurse is inside the tape, the area is designated a “no talking zone.”

In addition, during the two-hour medication administration times, nurses transfer all phone calls to the HUC, who triages the calls and takes messages. Only if it is urgent, will the HUC call the nurse.

Why it works for nurses and patients

The pilot program was so successful that Marymount Hospital has since rolled out the program to several other units. “The nurses love it because they can concentrate on administering meds,” says Conard-Scott. “And it benefits patients, too. We have to make sure our patients’ medications are being administered in a timely, efficient and safe manner.”