Expired Medications Found in Medication Storage Room
Penalty
Summary
Expired medications, including urinary pain relief tablets, fleet laxative enemas, and bottles of hydrogen peroxide, were found available for use in the medication storage room during an observation. The facility's policies require the pharmacist to review all medications for expiration dates and remove expired or discontinued drugs at least every thirty days. However, the expired medications observed had not been removed, and staff interviews revealed uncertainty regarding who was responsible for monitoring and removing expired medications from the medication room. The RN present during the observation acknowledged the presence of expired medications and stated that the pharmacy consultant regularly checked for expired items, but could not confirm how often central supply staff performed checks. The pharmacist confirmed that she manually tracked medications with pharmacy labels, while central supply staff were responsible for other medications. The DON, in the presence of the administrator, was initially unsure who was responsible for monitoring expired medications and later stated that all nurses were responsible for checking the medication rooms.