ArticlePharmacy (Basel, Switzerland)2020
An Evaluation of the Impact of Barcode Patient and Medication Scanning on Nursing Workflow at a UK Teaching Hospital.
Article in Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland), 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 28 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- The impact of mobile nursing information systems on patient satisfaction with nursing care: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC nursing · 2026Article
- Article
- Impact of barcode medication administration on patient safety in UK hospital settings: protocol for a mixed-methods realist evaluation.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Barcode medication administration system use and safety implications: a data-driven longitudinal study supported by clinical observation.BMJ health & care informatics · 2025Article
- Characterization of Safety Events Involving Technology in Primary and Community Care.Applied clinical informatics · 2023Article
- A computer architecture based on disruptive information technologies for drug management in hospitals.PeerJ. Computer science · 2023Article
- A Novel Use of Bar Code Medication Administration Data to Assess Nurse Staffing and Workload.Applied clinical informatics · 2023Article
- Barcode medication administration technology use in hospital practice: a mixed-methods observational study of policy deviations.BMJ quality & safety · 2021Observational
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Barcode medication administration (BCMA) is advocated as a technology that reduces medication errors relating to incorrect patient identity, drug or dose. Little is known, however, about the impact it has on nursing workflow. Our aim was to investigate the impact of BCMA on nursing activity and workflow. A comparative study was conducted on two similar surgical wards within an acute UK hospital. We observed nurses during drug rounds on a non-BCMA ward and a BCMA ward. Data were collected on drug round duration, timeliness of medication administration, patient identification, medication verification and general workflow patterns. BCMA appears not to alter drug round duration, although it may reduce the administration time per dose. Workflow was more streamlined, with less use of the medicines room. The rate of patient identification increased from 74% (of 47) patients to 100% (of 43), with 95% of 255 scannable medication doses verified using the system. This study suggests that BCMA does not affect drug round duration; further research is required to determine the impact it has on timeliness of medication administration. There was reduced variability in the medication administration workflow of nurses, along with an increased patient identification rate and high medication scan rate, representing potential benefits to patient safety.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.