Medication orders are clear and accurate.

(1)

Orders for drugs and biologicals are documented and signed by any practitioner who is authorized to write orders in accordance with state law, hospital policy, and medical staff bylaws, rules, and regulations. Note: Influenza and pneumococcal vaccines may be administered per physician-approved hospital policy after an assessment of contraindications.

(2)

The hospital minimizes the use of verbal medication orders.

(3)

The hospital develops and implements a written policy that defines the following: - Specific types of medication orders that it deems acceptable for use - Minimum required elements of a complete medication order, which must include medication name, medication dose, medication route, and medication frequency - When indication for use is required on a medication order - Precautions for ordering medications with look-alike or sound-alike names - Actions to take when medication orders are incomplete, illegible, or unclear - Required elements for medication titration orders, including the medication name, medication route, initial rate of infusion (dose/unit of time), incremental units to which the rate or dose can be increased or decreased, how often the rate or dose can be changed, the maximum rate or dose of infusion, and the objective clinical measure to be used to guide changes Note 1: Examples of objective clinical measures to be used to guide titration changes include blood pressure, Richmond Agitation–Sedation Scale (RASS), and the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM). Note 2: Drugs and biologicals not specifically prescribed as to time or number of doses are automatically stopped after a reasonable time that is predetermined by the medical staff.