Barcode Medication Administration (BCMA) Presentation - NURS 1059

This presentation focuses on Barcode Medication Administration (BCMA), a technology used in healthcare to reduce medication errors. It outlines how BCMA works, involving barcodes to link medication orders with the actual drugs administered. The presentation highlights the components of a BCMA system, including hardware and software, and describes the process of scanning barcodes for verification during drug administration. It also addresses the positive and negative aspects of BCMA implementation, emphasizing its impact on nursing practice, patient safety, and medication error reduction. The presentation is part of a NURS 1059 assignment, evaluating the impact of informatics and technological advancements on nursing and patient safety, and provides a comprehensive overview of BCMA's role in improving medication administration processes.

Barcode
Medication
Administrat
ion
Name
Institution
course

Barcode Medication Administration
● BCMA is a directory control framework that employs
barcodes to avoid errors that may arise as a result
of distribution of prescribed medication at health
facilities by human beings.
● The barcode has data of the medicine ordered by
the patient and it relates this data to the medicine
being administered.
● BCMA has to ensure that the accuracy and the
quality and safety of administration of medication
is maintained.
Photo: Michaud, E. (2013).
Barcode Medication
Administration: 10 Tips for a
Smooth Implementation

How Barcode Medication Administration Works
● A BCMA system consists of computer server and
software, barcode printer, barcode reader, and a
mobile computer.
● A pharmacist enters a unique barcode label into the
system and distributes the barcoded dosage to the
patient.
● The clinician scans these barcodes on the wrist
band of the patient during drug administration for
verification purposes (Shah, Lo, Babich, Tsao and
Bansback, 2016).
● In case the barcodes do not match then the
clinician will be visually notified.
Photo: The LeafGroup (2018). New report on barcode
medication administration finds virtually all hospitals have
the technology, but lack requirements to deploy it
effectively

References
College of Nurses of Ontario. (2019). Medication. Retrieved from http://
www.cno.org/globalassets/docs/prac/41007_medication.pdf
Shah, K., Lo, C., Babich, M., Tsao, N. W., & Bansback, N. J. (2016). Bar code medication
administration technology: a systematic review of impact on patient safety when used with
computerized prescriber order entry and automated dispensing devices. The Canadian journal of
hospital pharmacy, 69(5), 394. Retrieved from:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5085324/