Inappropriate use of naloxone in a hospital setting compromising patient safety: a quality improvement project

摘要

IntroductionLife threatening opioid toxicity is a rare but recognised complicationof opioid use. In 2014, NHS England released a patient safety alerton inappropriate prescribing of naloxone in patients with chronicopioid use, citing two fatal cases.1A retrospective audit (2017) of naloxone use in an acute hospitaldemonstrated that 90% (18/20) of administrations did not meetrecommended standards. This prompted a quality improvementproject to improve practice.