Drug Alerts

Every time you read an alert that impacts you, you take the first step in empowering yourself to prevent medication errors or other issues. But don't stop there: Take the next step by sharing this information with your healthcare professional, friends, and family. You can also tell us if something similar has happened to you by submitting a report.

The information you'll find in our Alerts section comes from the experts at The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP)—in partnership with I-Guard—or through other highly respected, non-biased, safety-minded organizations. Sources include the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), drug manufacturers, the American Pharmaceutical Association, and the National Library of Medicine, to name a few. And if it doesn't come from ISMP, we'll always let you know.

	Knowledge of look-alike drug names is critical
	When naming new medications, pharmaceutical manufacturers and the Food and Drug Administration go to great lengths to avoid names that look or sound like something that’s already on the market. Despite such efforts and all the premarket testing that takes place, problems with look-alike/sound-alike (LASA) drug name confusion may still occur unexpectedly. In fact, 25 percent of submissions to our national Institute for Safe Medication Practices practitioner error reporting program involve drug name confusion. To learn more about this problem and ways to prevent look-alike/sound alike medication errors read ISMP President Michael Cohen’s blog on the Philadelphia Inquirer website.
	Preventing dangerous sleep medication mix-ups
	Many of us have hectic schedules and we sometimes struggle to get a good night’s rest. In fact, it is estimated that 40 million Americans suffer from chronic insomnia (sleeplessness) and an additional 20 million experience episodic insomnia. During these times, we commonly turn to sleep medicines....
	ISMP QuarterWatch (4th Quarter 2009)
	In the full year of 2009 reported patient deaths associated with drug therapy increased by 14% compared to 2008, and were up 3-fold since 2000.