Keeping our patients safe, one dose at a time
Keeping our patients safe, one dose at a time
September 17th is World Patient Safety Day: established by the World Health Organization to call for global action to improve patient safety. This year’s theme is Medication Safety: something we take extremely seriously. Medication is an important part of treatment for substance use disorder and opioid addiction, and ensuring it’s taken safely every time is a top priority for our care teams.
As Canada’s largest fully accredited provider of treatment for opioid use disorder, with over 80 treatment centres across the country, CATC serves nearly 250,000 people every year. Even one oversight can be disastrous, so we use every possible precaution to prevent medication errors. We’re proud that we’re able to maintain an extremely low incident rate—a testament to the high level of quality care being offered within our pharmacies and clinics across the country.
Making opioid addiction treatment safer
Our patients are our top priority, which means their health always comes first. Here are some of the ways we’re working to keep you and your loved ones safe while in our care:
1. Ask the right questions. We ask every patient to confirm their name and medication dose, every time.
2. Checking the list, and checking it twice. Safe medication management is important to us. Our care staff use an 11-step checklist to ensure every dose of medication we administer is taken safely.
3. Continuous improvement. We regularly review and improve our operational policies to prevent unsafe medication practices. We implement procedures to ensure the best possible quality of care across our treatment centres.
4. Medication reviews. We work with our patients to review their medication plan and make sure it’s helping them best achieve their goals.
5. Free Naloxone kits. We encourage all of our patients to take a free Naloxone kit, available at all of our treatment centres. These kits save the lives of people who accidentally overdose.
Take control of your health
It’s important for anyone in recovery from substance use disorder to play an active role in their care. We encourage our patients to regularly review their medications with us, understand any potential side effects and risk factors and understand why they’re taking each one. We’re active partners in our patients’ safety and success, whatever success means for them.
To all of our patients and their loved ones, happy World Patient Safety Day. We’re with you all the way!