ISMP Canada Safety Bulletins

Read the Safety Bulletins to help you strengthen your medication-use system. Learn about strategies to mitigate harm and to prevent medication errors based on analyses of medication incident reports from Canadian health care providers, facilities, pharmacies, organizations, and consumers.

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ISMP Canada Safety Bulletins are complimentary with support from Health Canada.

Bulletin archive

2023 - Volume 23

ISSUE 1

“No Drug Selected” = Taking the Smart Out of Smart Pumps

Smart pumps with dose error reduction software (DERS) support organizations in creating a tailored library of medications with associated dosing guidelines. By establishing dosing limits and alerts within DERS, organizations can use smart pumps to detect dosing and programming errors that may harm patients. This safety bulletin outlines situations in which bypassing the drug library and DERS takes the “smart” out of smart pumps. It also describes the risks associated with bypassing this software and offers strategies to increase the use of this technology.

Sidebar: New Pan-Canadian Diversion Risk Assessment Tool

Bulletin PDF