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Reduce Adverse Drug Events Involving Insulin

Diabetic patients who use insulin are at risk of suffering adverse drug events (ADEs) if their insulin care is not carefully managed. Hypoglycemic episodes can be sudden and severe and may lead to other complications and harm. Coordinating care processes so as to properly time monitoring of glucose levels and administration of insulin can help reduce the risk of an ADE. Using standardized tools for dosing insulin and testing blood sugar levels also can help to reduce such events.


Changes for Improvement
Perform Glucose Monitoring on Patient Care Units
Use a Sliding Scale for Insulin Dosing
Use Clocks with Timers for Insulin Administration
Use Diabetic Management Flowsheets
Permit Patients to Self-Administer Insulin
Use Pre-Printed Orders for Insulin
Coordinate Insulin Doses with Meal Times