Eliminate Medication Errors Due to Look-Alike and Sound-Alike Medication Names

Tall Man Plus drug identification data helps medical professionals using NDDF Plus detect drugs that could be confused because of similarly spelled names. It uses alternating upper- and lower-case spelling of drug names to visually distinguish look-alike, sound-alike medication names. For example, a drug such as acetazolamide would appear as AcetaZOLAMIDE, to distinguish it from acetohexamide, which would appear as AcetoHEXAMIDE.

According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the confusion of drug names accounts for approximately 15% of all reported medication errors. Such errors can waste time, raise healthcare costs and cause serious injury or even death.

Problem Drug Names Based on Recommendations From the FDA and ISMP; Plus An Expanded List From First DataBank

Tall Man Plus selects potential problem drug names for listing based partly on a review of recommendations made by various public and private organizations, including those of the FDA's MedWatch program, and the Medication Error Reporting Program at the Institute for Safe Medication Practices. Currently these organizations have selected 16 look-alike name pairs for inclusion (list available at www.fda.gov/cder/drug/MedErrors/nameDiff.htm).

In addition to these name pairs, Tall Man Plus features an expanded list of names, based on First DataBank's own experience and internal review. If a recognized healthcare organization eventually recommends use of a drug name-pair with casing that conflicts with an existing Tall Man Plus name, the organization's name will be given preference. In all instances, the source of the recommendation will appear along with the name.

While not a panacea, Tall Man Plus represents one more step in the ongoing process of eliminating drug prescription and administration errors - one that brings healthcare professionals closer to the goal of continually improving patient safety in drug use.