In a recent article — “56% Rate of Adherence to Sterile Compounding SOPs Is ‘Crazy’” — Pharmacy Practice News gathers insights and takes a deeper dive into a recent survey from the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) on sterile compounding in pharmacies, which revealed major compliance gaps. Their report compiled responses from more than 600 pharmacists, technicians, and other related pharmacy occupations.
Although the survey found that progress had been made in achieving compounding safety, it concluded that significant gaps still remained. For instance, “three-fourths of respondents reported being aware of at least one pharmacy compounding error in the past 12 months,” said Christina Michalek, RPh, the ISMP medication safety specialist who presented the findings. The errors ranged from incorrect dose or concentration to faulty labeling to wrong drug used. “Some were found and corrected before dispensing,” Michalek said, “while others came to light only after leaving the pharmacy.”
Another part of the survey focused on standard operating procedures (SOPs) — whether they were followed and to what extent. “More than half of respondents (56%) reported that SOPs were ‘defined and always followed.’ About one-third (34%) said they were defined and ‘often followed,’ while 10% said they were ‘never, rarely, or sometimes’ defined and followed.”
Read the full article at Pharmacy Practice News here.
The comprehensive ISMP Pulse Check survey report can be found here.
