ed medication is the
only one whose lid
pops open, so you're
much more likely to
be accessing the
right drug — as long
as the cabinet has
been stocked cor-
rectly."
Automated dis-
pensing cabinets
can also come with
a small drawer that has a line of pockets, which each have room for
a single medication tablet, capsule or vial. Once a medication is
selected, the drawer will pop out only far enough to reveal the indi-
vidual pocket where the medication is stored. The cabinet's comput-
er system is able to keep track of the number of medications you've
removed and only opens far enough to reach the medication you
need.
You can even get dispensing cabinets for different areas of your
facility. There are specialized, automated medication carts for
anesthesia providers that store all the drugs they use. These cabi-
nets are more widely adopted in inpatient perioperative areas, but
could also be beneficial in outpatient settings that have pharmacy
oversight in light of their important safety benefits, adds Ms.
Mandrack.
3. Drug disposal systems
It wasn't so long ago that you tossed partially used vials or expired
medications in a plastic container that hung on the wall. Newer
9 2 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • A P R I L 2 0 1 8
• EASY TO ID Color-coded labels let staff identify medication classes with just a quick
glance.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
