Healthcare Medication Storage Essentials

Medication management is essential for patient safety and to maintain a high quality of care. Medication management is the process of overseeing prescriptions to ensure they are taken properly and are achieving the intended therapeutic outcome. Medication storage is a key component of medication management. Safety, security, and integrity are three healthcare medication storage essentials. 

Why is Secure Medication Storage Essential?

Medication storage is a key component of medication management.  The Joint Commission provides standards for an objective evaluation to measure, assess, and improve the performance of an organization. The standards are essential to providing safe, high-quality care (learn more about the standards).

The Joint Commission’s standards apply to all stages of medication management including:

1. Planning
2. Procurement
3. Storage
4. Ordering
5. Dispensing
6. Administration
7. Monitoring

Hospitals, ambulatory health care, assisted living communities, behavioral health care providers, home care providers, hospitals, laboratory services, nursing care providers, and pharmacies can earn accreditation and certification. Accreditation demonstrates excellence in patient care and safety.

Accreditation and/or certification is awarded after successful completion of an on-site survey. The accreditation lasts 2-3 years depending on your type of organization. If the Joint Commission identifies an area of non-compliance, the healthcare organization will receive a Requirement for Improvement (RFI). To avoid losing the accreditation, the healthcare organization must address the RFI and submit evidence of compliance within a specified timeframe. Issues with medication storage is a common reason for an RFI.

In addition to JCAHO compliance, additional federal regulations apply for all controlled substances. Controlled substances are regulated by the DEA and must be secured (learn more about DEA compliance).

Healthcare Medication Storage Essentials

The Joint Commission’s secure medication storage performance indicators can be grouped into three main categories –safety, security, and integrity.

Safety

Medication safety requirements pertaining to the accurate and proper administration of medications. Medication errors are preventable but are all too common – the wrong medication, the wrong dose, the wrong time, etc. Medications need to be stored in a specific location with accurately labeled patient information to make sure that the right medication is given to the right patient at the right time. When medications are stored properly and labeled clearly and accurately, the chance of medication errors is reduced.

Security

Security performance indicators pertaining to the safe storage, proper handling, and disposition of medications. There must be policies that define secure medication storage and access control by only authorized healthcare professionals. Access control ensures the medications are stored in a secure environment and only accessible to authorized professionals with the electronic code and/or manual key. Secure storage with access control promotes accountability and helps reduce theft/abuse.

Integrity

Medications need to be safeguarded and stored in the proper environment per the drug’s specifications. Safeguards pertain to written logs, electronic tracking, and inspections of the medication. The proper environment depends on the drug’s specifications of proper temperature, light, humidity, sanitation, ventilation, etc.

How Riemer Systems Can Help

When it comes to medication storage, Riemer Systems understands that safety, security, and integrity are essential.

Safety

When medications are labeled and stored properly, the chance of medication errors is reduced. Our wall mounted locking cabinets and lock boxes provide safe storage where you can label and organize the medications as needed.

The chance of medication errors can be further reduced when the medication is stored in a patient-specific manner, such as a wall mounted lock box in or outside the patient’s room. Furthermore, patient-specific storage can help reduce the waste of multi-dose medications, improve infection control, and reduce Multidrug-Resistant Organisms  (MDRO) transmission.

Security

At Riemer Systems, our wall mounted locking cabinets and portable lock boxes provide secure medication storage and access control with the following lock features:

• Keyless, electronic push-button lock
• A safety backup override key
• An extended battery life of 75,000 cycles for ease of maintenance
• A low battery indicator
• Convenient, easily accessible battery for installation/removal
• Easy to clean membrane keypad
• 20 user codes per lock (19 user codes & one supervisor master code)
• Flexibility to change out the lock without purchasing a new lock box

When customizing your locking cabinet and/or lock box, you can choose the lock that best suits your needs – self-locking, manual/shared use, and/or audit trail (learn more about how to choose the right lock for your needs). The audit trail lock is ideal if you prefer an electronic log rather than a written log.

Integrity

Often, a cool dry dark place is ideal for medication storage. Heat and/or humidity can destabilize the medication or reduce their efficacy. Our Wall Mounted Locking Cabinets and/or Portable Lock Boxes provide a protected storage environment at room temperature free of debris, moisture, and other contaminants.

Summary

Our wall mounted locking cabinets and portable lock boxes have been designed to be the ideal secure medication storage solution for healthcare and clinic settings. Our products have been designed for JCAHO compliance. Our Portable Electronic Control Box with Tracking Software was designed to for both JCAHO and DEA compliance.

Our products are commonly used in patient rooms, hospital corridors, on anesthesia carts, and in various departments throughout healthcare organizations. You can browse our medication lock boxes online and customize it to fit your needs in the following ways:

• Surface mount, wall mount, or portable
• Self-locking, manual, or audit trail lock
• White, frosted, clear, or wood grain door
• Various sizes and types

If you don’t find a product on our website that meets your needs, contact us and let us know what you are looking for and we can develop a solution for you.