Medication Administration Error and its Associated Factors Among Nurses in a Tertiary Hospital, Southeast Nigeria

Errors in the administration of medications can have serious consequences and put patients' safety in danger Despite this, there remained a dearth of information on this topic in the south-east of Nigeria. This study aimed to identify the frequency, types, and factors linked to medication administration errors (MAE) among nurses working in tertiary institutions in south-eastern Nigeria. This cross-sectional study surveyed a total of 251 Nurses. The data were collected with a questionnaire and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The mean and standard deviation were used for the 4-point scale items that assessed the influencing factors on MAEs and a mean (M) >2.5 was judged to be an influencing factor. Chi-Square test/Fisher's exact test were used to test for significant association between demographic characteristics and medication administration error at a 5% level of significance. The findings revealed that most (86.5%) of the respondents had administered medications incorrectly. The major nurse-related MAEs were a misidentification of drugs (2.71 ±1.00) and poor drug storage (2.70 ±0.90) were the major institutional factors. No significant association was found between medication administration error and the demographic characteristics: age (p = .376), gender (p = .647), rank (p = .067), working experience (p = .141), and highest academic qualification (p = .373). There is a high occurrence of MAEs among the nurses in this study. As a result, it should be a top priority to regularly provide training on medication safety procedures and updates on new guidelines.