Anaesthesia drugs preparation and administration in Libyan tertiary hospitals: a multicentre qualitative observational study

Abstract

Background: Accidental administration of the wrong medication in anaesthesia can cause serious harm to the patient. To help prevent this issue, anaesthetists must be aware of their responsibility to implement a safe practice of drug preparation and administration. We aimed to assess the anaesthesia drug preparation and administration across Libyan tertiary hospitals.
Method: Three hospitals took part in a pilot study for over two months. Fifteen cases were observed from the start until the end of the operation. We conducted 15 semi-structured interviews immediately after completing the observation with the anaesthetists involved. All the interviews and observations data were transcribed, qualitatively analysed using line-by-line coding and then the codes were synthesised into themes.
Result: We found that there was no ‘standard’ practice for drug preparation and administration with a significant variation in the timing of medication preparation, the method of medication and syringe checking, and the separation of emergency medications.
Conclusion: We have demonstrated an urgent need for drug preparation and administration practice improvement across the Libyan healthcare system. Further research is required into the existing practices for drug preparation and administration to minimise patient safety risks.