Review.pdf

The World Health Organization (WHO) launched its third Global Patient Safety Challenge, "Medication Without Harm", in March 2017, aiming to reduce severe avoidable medication-related harm globally by 50% in 5 years. The Department of Health and Social Care established a Short Life Working Group (SLWG) to provide advice on improving medication safety. The SLWG recommended establishing a medication error and safety programme, utilizing technological developments, and promoting cultural change within healthcare systems. Key priorities include rolling out electronic-prescribing, optimizing medicines administration, and employing interventions like pharmacist-led information technology. The SLWG also emphasized the importance of shared decision-making, patient-friendly packaging and labelling, and professional regulation to ensure safe and effective medicines use. Additionally, the group tasked the NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service to build an online repository of good medicine safety practice and develop prescribing safety metrics to promote safer prescribing and reduce medication error.