Perform medication reconciliation at all transitions.Use standardized order sets and protocols.Educate staff based on evidence and best practices.The Health Research and Educational Trust focuses on reducing harm related to HAMs by 50% and recommends the following interventions to achieve this goal: The most common anticoagulant errors in acute hospital settings are administration mistakes, including incorrect dosage calculation and infusion rates. All these types of medications are included on the List of High Alert Medications (HAMs) by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) that require special safeguards to reduce the risk of errors or adverse effects. Antiplatelets include aspirin and other aggregation inhibitors such as clopidogrel, and thrombolytics include alteplase (tPA). Anticoagulants include the following drug classes: heparins or unfractionated heparin and low molecular weight heparin (LMWH), warfarin (Coumadin), selective factor Xa inhibitors (rivaroxaban), and direct thrombin inhibitors (dabigatran).

This section will discuss medications that affect blood coagulation and includes several types of medications including anticoagulants, antiplatelets, and thrombolytics, as well as their associated reversal agents.Īnticoagulants prevent the formation of a clot by inhibiting certain types of clotting factors.

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