DNP- LEADERSHIP FOR ADVANCED NURSING PRACTICE

DNP-830-0502: Data Analysis

Introduction

Medication errors can occur in hospitals, clinics, or care homes or patients’ homes and are caused by simple mistakes made by providers including physicians and nurses when prescribing, dispensing and giving out medications to patients. When this occur, it can lead to side effects, injure the patient and may even lead to the death of patients. It is estimated in the United States that thousands of people get injured as a result of medication errors. It can be prevented or reduced by patients taken active roles in the management of their own health such as asking pertinent or unclear questions from their doctors, PCP, pharmacists and other health care providers (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2019). This project examines the impacts of medication administration errors on 3-4-year-old Leukemia patients including the external and internal validity of issues linked with the methodology and design used in this project as well as how and why a different methodology or design might be beneficial and contribute effectively to each study.

Impact of Medication Administration Errors on 3-4-Year-Old Leukemia Patients

Walsh, Mazor, Stille, Torres, Wagner, & Moretti, et al. (2011), in the article “Medication Errors in the Homes of Children with Chronic Conditions” describes the ways through which medics extend concern to children living with chronic diseases from their homes. It aims at establishing the impact of administration errors on children suffering from chronic diseases, such as leukemia. The article employs the qualitative method of research. This research design works in a way whereby the researchers study the mannerisms, opinions, and motivations of the stud population. In this article, medical professionals visit homes and directly observe the way the medication is administered to children. They also keep checking the prescribed doses as well as ensuring constant reviews (Walsh.et.al, 2011).

There are a few validity issues that are associated with the qualitative research method. The issues could be external or even internal. The external validity issues refer to those that are oriented towards ways through which an outcome of a study may relate to different settings. In the case of the qualitative research methods employed in this article, the impact of medication errors in different chronic diseases ay not apply to particular ailments. This may cause invalid outcomes. The internal validity issues, o the other hand, aims at establishing a trustworthy cause-and-effect association between an independent variable and the dependent variable. Among the internal issues that may be linked to the qualitative research methods include the randomization especially when research groups are assigned, different control groups. This also applies to the selection of population samples that will meet the criteria of the study. They ought to be utterly representative of the population being studied.

The qualitative method is, however, not the best for any research especially one concerning vital data as in a medical research. I believe that using mixed methods of research would produce better results. The research method involves both qualitative and quantitative research methods. Therefore, the two methods would be complimentary in each other and hence increase the probability of producing the best results for the particular study. Also, the quantitative methods would be important in minimizing the errors of inaccuracy and invalidity that may arise as a result of biasness. For instance, it is important to note that the qualitative research method is more subjective to people’s opinions. At different times, individuals will tend to make biased opinions and give perceptions that are subjective, and which may be inaccurate as far as the study topic is concerned. Using the quantitative method in a complementary way is important especially when it comes to minimizing such errors

Medication Errors on Oral Chemotherapy in Children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in a Developing Country

On its part, the authors, Oberoi, Trehan, & Marwaha, (2014). are oriented towards establishing the impact of medication errors on children living with Leukemia. However, the article follows a different approach than that of the first article as far as the research methodology employed is concerned. The reason is that the design and approach employed is more quantitative than qualitative. With the quantitative approach, the researcher pays much attention to numbers. For instance, data is collected from a wider population represented with large sample sizes. It also looks at the population of people that perceive a particular issue in a particular way. With the quantitative research methodology, the researcher tends to study the number of responses instead of paying attention to the emotional insights and opinions of the respondents as opposed to the qualitative research methodology (Oberoi, Trehan & Marwaha, 2014).

It is important to acknowledge different internal and external validity issues associated with the quantitative research methodology. The internal validity issues include the instrumentation implemented as well as selection and morality levels, among others. Such factors impact the results that would be produced after the quantitative research. In case the instruments used during experimentation or the entire process of data collection and analysis are the best, then the validity of the results would be enhanced and vice versa. Examples of external validity issues include the sample population that is studied. The impact may be different in different scenarios, and hence the impacts on a particular victim may be dissimilar from others.

I believe that using both qualitative and quantitative research methods would lead to better results in the study. This is the mixed research method. This is especially for the reason that it does not only pay attention to numbers but also to the quality of opinions gathered. For instance, using both methods would enhance the results in a complementary way. It would also reduce the chances of errors in the results by minimizing the statistical errors that are common in quantitative methods of research. In such a case, it would be imperative to state that the implementation of the mixed methods of research would increase the chances of accuracy in the data collection and analysis procedures.

The Relationship between Patient Age and Errors in the Admission Medication History: Secondary Analysis of RCT Data.

In the article “The Relationship between Patient Age and Errors in the Admission Medication History: Secondary Analysis of RCT Data”, contains information about the impact of medical errors on children living with Leukemia. In the article, it employs a mixed method of research. This research design is an integration of both qualitative and quantitative data methods. For instance, it includes the use of surveys and experiments which are majorly used in quantitative data. It also implements interviews and focuses groups, which are mainly used when handling qualitative data (THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PATIENT AGE AND ERRORS IN THE ADMISSION MEDICATION HISTORY: SECONDARY ANALYSIS OF RCT DATA, 2015).

Using the method takes into consideration different validity issues, whether internal or external. Among the issues are the complexity involved. That the method employs a combination of two different research methods makes it a complex approach, especially in the sense that it involves a wide range of data. The more the data used, the higher the chances of making errors. This implies that the validity of the results may be lower.

However, I believe that using this particular method is the best for this research. For instance, it enables a more comprehensive understanding of the topic involved. In this case, the researchers were able to properly identify the research problem better than if the qualitative method alone or the quantitative method alone was used. The mixed research method also minimizes the chances of errors that arise from using either the qualitative or quantitative research methods as they would complement each other. This minimizes chances of invalidity.

Appendix

Comparison Table

References

Oberoi, S., Trehan, A., & Marwaha, R. (2014). Medication errors on oral chemotherapy in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in a developing country. Pediatric Blood & Cancer, 61(12), 2218-2222. doi: 10.1002/pbc.25203

Walsh, K., Mazor, K., Stille, C., Torres, I., Wagner, J., & Moretti, J. et al. (2011). Medication errors in the homes of children with chronic conditions. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 96(6), 581-586. doi: 10.1136/adc.2010.204479

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PATIENT AGE AND ERRORS IN THE ADMISSION MEDICATION HISTORY: SECONDARY ANALYSIS OF RCT DATA. (2015). The Gerontologist, 55(Suppl_2), 388-388. doi: 10.1093/geront/gnv178.10

I, (Bola Odusola-Stephen), verify that I have completed (10) clock hours in association with the goals and objectives for this assignment. I have also tracked said practice hours in the Typhon Student Tracking System for verification purposes and will be sure that all approvals are in place from my faculty and practice mentor.