Bridge Program Works To Prevent Medication Errors

FT. LAUDERDALE, FL -- North Shore Medical Center FMC Campus, 459-bed acute care hospital in Lauderdale Lakes, has implemented a new form of technology, the Bridge Program, designed to improve medication safety.

The advanced technology gives FMC Campus’s team of doctors, nurses and staff a specialized system that uses bar code and scanner verification technology to distribute medication to patients. Clinicians scan their own identification badge, scan the patients’ identification band and then scan the appropriate medication to access the patients’ records to ensure that all information matches. The software system will verify the “five rights:” confirming that the patient, drug, dose, time and route administered all match. 

The technology performs all checks at a point of patient care before the drug reaches the patient. Other highlights of the Bridge Program include: accessing patient files for allergy cross-checks and verification, height, weight and age, checks for high-risk medications, reporting capabilities that track near-misses, real-time online order confirmation, online drug reference access and ability to communicate with the hospital pharmacy.

“At North Shore Medical Center FMC Campus our patients' care and safety are our first priority,” said Ben Rodriguez, Chief Administrative Officer of North Shore Medical Center FMC Campus. “The Bridge Program presents advanced technology that will make an excellent addition to our safety measures in regards to patient medications and care.”

About North Shore Medical Center FMC Campus
North Shore Medical Center FMC Campus, part of Tenet’s Miami-Dade/Broward Health Network, is a 459-bed acute care hospital founded in 1973 and fully accredited by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Located at 5000 West Oakland Park Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale in western Broward County, FMC Campus offers a broad range of medical and surgical services. 

Its Heart Institute of Florida, the hospital’s center for cardiac services, is designated a Premium Cardiac Specialty Center by UnitedHealthcare.  The hospital earned the Pulmonary Care Excellence Award for 2008 from HealthGrades, a leading ratings organization for hospitals and physicians, and it also earned five-star ratings from HealthGrades for its treatment of heart attacks, heart failure, stroke, pneumonia, hip fractures and other ailments.  FMC Campus’s additional services include neurology and neurosurgery, cancer care, orthopedics, urology, psychiatry, gynecology, imaging, pain center, sleep lab, wound care, and 24-hour emergency services.