The problem that was identified while working in the emergency room (ER) by our director was the low compliance with medication reconciliation when patients arrive at the ER. Medication reconciliation was developed to reduce medical mistakes and injuries through a process of creating and comparing a current medication list from the patient, information sources, and resolving discrepancies (Porcelli, Waitman, & Brown, 2010). Many factors influence this process. Challenges and barriers to developing an accurate current medication history include: time requirements, staffing resources, the complexity of the process and the inability of some patients to participate, the lack of a standardized process to create lists, the use of both generic and popular drug names, and the inability of some patients to manage multiple medications with …show more content…
Researchers demonstrated the efficacy of having pharmacy staff (pharmacists and pharmacy technicians) obtain what is referred to as the “Best Possible Medication History” (BPMH) and conducted the medication reconciliation evaluation. When pharmacy staff obtained a medication history that was verified using other sources, timely medication reconciliation was achieved for admitted ED patients with fewer discrepancies (Emergency Nurses Association,