Running Head: QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT: MEDICATION

Quality Improvement Project: Medication Education

Brianna H. DeValk
NUR 3207
Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing
On my honor, I have neither given nor received aid on this assignment or test, and I pledge that
I am in compliance with the BSMCON Honor System.

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT: MEDICATION EDUCATION

Nursing practice can be defined as a set of practical procedures and standards of care.
The approach to patient care is systematic based on evidence based practice and quality/ safety
measures. Several problems (or issues) in nursing may arise prior to/ throughout the
implementation of certain aspects of nursing practice. One such issue is patient education
regarding personal medications; specifically, medication education related to daily regimens and
medication action (why a certain medication is taken, what is the goal, etc.) In addition to
functioning as a driving force for both safety and quality standards, a patients understanding of
his or her medications is vital to a satisfactory healthcare experience. A recent study conducted
by the Association for Patient Experience, found that only 35% of patients knew the side effects
of their medications (Improving, 2014). In addition, a report by World Health Organization
found that as many as fifty percent of patients with chronic diseases do not take their medications
as prescribed (Rife, 2012, pg.1). Generally speaking, patients are unaware of which medications
to take, when these medications are supposed to be taken, why these medications are taken, and
which side effects to be aware of in case any signs/symptoms develop. As a result, medication
adherence continues to be a significant obstacle in health care that prevents many patients from
achieving optimal management of their disease process (Rife, 2012, pg. 1).
Oftentimes, nurses can get overwhelmed with various aspects involved in the nursingpatient interaction resulting in deficient medication education. A successful quality improvement
project will yield useful results for those attempting to further their nursing practice. Thorough
examination of several quality and safety standards is needed to appropriately address the issue
of ineffective medication education. These standards are as follows: (1) Communication about
Medications, (2) Communication with Nurses, (3) Communication with Doctor(s), (4) Pain

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT: MEDICATION EDUCATION

Management, (5) Discharge Information, and (6) Care transition. In order to examine these
measures, data must first be collected. Appropriate utilization of staff involvement and
filled/collected patient surveys is imperative to the success of data collection. Surveys are to be
conducted anonymously, either by phone or through the mail, two-three days and then again at
three-four weeks post initial hospitalization. Questions regarding staff interaction with the
patient, specific to medication administration and education, are to be discussed. In addition, if
possible, it would also be interesting to gather information regarding the importance of
medication education at patient follow-up appointments. How often to clinical physicians/ nurses
utilize the time during follow-up appointments (discussed at discharge) as medication reminders
or opportunities to inquire further into patients personal knowledge base of medications taken?
Ensuring, on a practice level, that the nurse provides medication education, not only
protects the safety of the patient but also supplies the patient with quality medical care. Patients
need to know why a medication is ordered and why/ how it affects personal disease process.
Examining information gathered through the quality and safety project, and identifying any
practice issues therein, should enable nurses to better approach medication education. Successful
incorporation of concepts, such as Ask 3/ Teach 3, which is designed to reinforce the critical
components that each patient should understand about their medications [name, prescribed for,
potential side effects], has been shown to prompt a significant rise in medication
communication feedback (Improving, 2014).

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT: MEDICATION EDUCATION

References
Improving Medication Communication. (2014). Retrieved November 22, 2014, from http://www.patientexperience.org/Resources/Best-Practices/Case-Studies/Improving-Medication-Communication.aspx
Rife, K., Ginty, S., Hohner, E., Stamper, H., Sabota, K., & Bright, D. (2012). Remember Your MEDS:
Medication Education Delivers Success. INNOVATIONS in Pharmacy, 3(1), 1-6.

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT: MEDICATION EDUCATION

Appendix A

Communication
about
Medications
Communication
with Nurses
Communication
with Doctors
Pain
Management
Discharge
Information
Care Transition
*Implementation
of Ask 3/ Teach
3
Below 75%
At or Above 75%
At or Above 90%

January

February

March

April

June

89%

81%

81%

67%

52%

82%

87%

55%

67%

78%

76%

46%

77%

54%

34%

76%

83%

86%

91%

42%

78%

54%

86%

68%

56%

76%

55%

79%

76%

69%

80%

91%

88%

67%

89%

July

Trend

*Serves as education tool specifically implemented within the hospital environment to facilitate
medication education and recall. For the purposes of this project, those executing the collection of data
are particularly interested in whether or not the patient experienced the Ask 3/ Teach 3 method while in
the hospital.

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT: MEDICATION EDUCATION