DOI: 10.36347/sajp

Pages: 108-116

Patient safety, which is the prevention of patient harm resulting from the processes of health care delivery, is a critical component of health care quality. This study sought to evaluate the culture of pharmacy patient safety in a tertiary hospital in Nigeria. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Questionnaire on Pharmacy Safety was adapted and used for this study. The questionnaire was administered randomly to 25 staff working in the pharmacy area where prescriptions were dropped off, filled, dispensed, and picked up or prepared for delivery. A purposive sampling technique was utilized whereby only staffs that had direct professional interactions with patients were randomly selected. Data was analyzed with SPSS V. 20. Over 80% of respondents were professionals (pharmacists /Internees) who were directly involved in providing pharmaceutical services in the department; 57% of respondents had worked in the pharmacy department from 6 months to 6 years and 92% worked at least 32 hours per week. Overall positive responses were highly significant for Teamwork (92%), Overall Perception of Patient Safety (91%), Patient Counselling (81%), but poor for Documenting Mistakes (52%) Response to Mistakes (46%) and Staffing, Work Pressure and Pace (30%). Patient Safety in this Pharmacy received an overall rating of 86.3%. Management of the hospital need re-evaluate current safety culture composites; amend systems where necessary in order to reduce risks and to improve Pharmacy Patient Safety.