Table 1.
Definition of a medication error, error severity index
| NCC MERP category | Description of NCCMERP category | ADE category |
| No error | ||
| A | Circumstances or events that have the capacity to cause error | |
| Error, no harm | ||
| B | An error occurred, but the medication did not reach the patient | Intercepted potential ADE |
| C | An error occurred that reached the patient but did not cause patient harm | Non-intercepted potential ADE |
| D | An error occurred that resulted in the need for increased patient monitoring but no patient harm | Non-intercepted potential ADE |
| Error, harm | ||
| E | An error occurred that resulted in the need for treatment or intervention and caused temporary patient harm | Preventable ADE |
| F | An error occurred that resulted in initial or prolonged hospitalization and caused temporary patient harm | Preventable ADE |
| G | An error occurred that resulted in permanent patient harm | Preventable ADE |
| H | An error occurred that resulted in a near-death event (eg, anaphylaxis, cardiac arrest) | Preventable ADE |
| Error, death | ||
| I | An error occurred that resulted in patient death | Preventable ADE |
National Coordinating Council on Medication Error Reporting and Prevention (NCC MERP), definition of a medication error26 27: “A medication error is any preventable event that may cause or lead to inappropriate medication use or patient harm while the medication is in the control of the healthcare professional, patient, or consumer. Such events may be related to professional practice, healthcare products, procedures, and systems, including prescribing*; order communication; product labeling, packaging, and nomenclature; compounding; dispensing; distribution; administration; education; monitoring; and use.” *Our study was limited to prescribing errors.