DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2014.v02i06.108

Pages: 3389-3392

Handwriting medication prescribing errors are underestimated in Mali. They are sometimes harmful to patients and can even threaten their lives. We carried out a prospective cross-sectional study in Bamako which purpose was to evaluate the prevalence and type of prescribing errors. Of the 1537 handwritten prescriptions, 827 (53.8%) contained at least one errors. The identification of the prescriber was missing in 37% (n=569). The weight was missing in 99%; and the height was missing in 88%. The dose of the prescribed medicine was missing in 25.7% and the pharmaceutical form was missing in 55.1%. 65% of the prescriptions were not legible.