The Commission's October bulletin carried a coronial alert every medication round should hear: three aged care residents died after being given another person's medicines. The Commission described the failures as preventable.
The checks that stop this are basic, and they fail under time pressure:
- Right resident, confirmed at the bedside — not at the trolley
- Uninterrupted rounds, with a tabard that staff actually respect
- A second check for high-risk medicines, every time
Medication administration errors are among the most common complaints the Commission receives about residential care. Protect the round, and you prevent the incident.
Source: Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission Bulletin #9, 2026.
