Grand Canyon University – College of Nursing and Health Care Professions
Assessment 2: Advanced Practice Care Plan – Medication Error Prevention and Management
Course:
APRN 625: Advanced Clinical Practice and Pharmacotherapeutics
Assessment Type:
Individual Written Assignment (Care Plan Report)
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Length Requirement:
3–4 pages (approximately 1,000–1,200 words, excluding references)
Weighting:
30% of final grade
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Assessment Context
Medication errors remain a significant challenge in clinical practice, posing threats to patient safety and professional accountability. Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) are uniquely positioned to lead prevention strategies through evidence-based clinical decision-making, patient education, and system-level advocacy. This assessment develops your competence in identifying risk factors, analyzing the root causes of medication errors, and designing a comprehensive care plan for error prevention and patient recovery. The task aligns with national safety standards, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Essentials, and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) guidelines.
Assessment Task Description
Develop an individual, evidence-based care plan addressing the prevention and management of medication errors within an advanced nursing practice context. Use a real or simulated patient scenario relevant to your current or intended area of specialization (e.g., FNP, AGACNP, PMHNP). Your care plan should demonstrate advanced clinical reasoning, patient-centered interventions, and interprofessional collaboration to promote safe medication use.
Instructions:
- Select a case involving an actual or potential medication error (e.g., wrong dose, wrong patient, omission, or adverse drug interaction).
- Analyze the contributing factors and system errors that led to or could lead to the medication error.
- Formulate an evidence-based care plan using the nursing process (assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, evaluation) to prevent recurrence.
- Integrate pharmacological principles, safety protocols, and patient education strategies.
- Support recommendations with current scholarly sources (2018–2026).
Formatting and Submission Requirements
- APA 7th edition format
- 3–4 double-spaced pages, excluding title and reference pages
- 12-point Times New Roman font
- Minimum of five scholarly peer-reviewed references published within the last eight years
- Submit electronically via the Learning Management System under “Assessment 2: Care Plan”
Assessment Criteria (5-Criterion Rubric)
| Criterion | Excellent (90–100%) | Good (80–89%) | Fair (70–79%) | Poor (0–69%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Clinical Analysis and Case Relevance | Provides a clear, accurate, and clinically relevant analysis of a medication error scenario using advanced reasoning and contextually rich detail. | Accurate and relevant analysis with minor gaps in depth or contextualization. | Limited analysis; lacks sufficient detail or clear clinical relevance. | Inaccurate or superficial analysis; minimal understanding of medication error context. |
| 2. Care Plan Development | Comprehensive and evidence-based care plan integrating ADPIE framework and pharmacological safety principles. | Sound care plan with appropriate structure and some integration of evidence-based principles. | Partially structured plan; limited connection to evidence or ADPIE framework. | Incomplete or poorly structured plan; lacks integration of safety or clinical evidence. |
| 3. Application of Evidence and Guidelines | Consistently integrates current research, national safety standards, and pharmacological guidelines (AACN, ISMP, IHI). | Uses mostly current evidence and appropriate guidelines with minor inconsistencies. | Limited or outdated evidence; minimal connection to established safety guidelines. | No or irrelevant evidence cited; fails to reference safety standards. |
| 4. Interprofessional and Ethical Considerations | Demonstrates clear ethical reasoning and collaborative care strategies within advanced practice scope. | Addresses ethical and collaborative elements adequately with moderate integration. | Mentions ethics or collaboration but lacks application to scenario. | Omission or misrepresentation of ethical and interprofessional principles. |
| 5. Scholarly Writing and APA Formatting | Clear, concise, logically organized, and free from APA or grammatical errors. | Mostly well-organized and clear; minor APA or stylistic errors. | Occasional lapses in structure or APA compliance. | Disorganized or unclear writing; frequent APA or grammatical issues. |
Safe medication administration is a central responsibility of APRNs in all clinical settings. Preventing medication errors requires a structured care plan that addresses both system vulnerabilities and practitioner vigilance. Developing a comprehensive plan involves identifying root causes, such as communication breakdowns and workflow inefficiencies, while integrating patient education, technology safeguards, and interdisciplinary collaboration to strengthen safety outcomes (Rodziewicz et al., 2022).
Scholarly References
- Rodziewicz, T. L., Houseman, B., & Hipskind, J. E. (2022). Medical error prevention. *StatPearls Publishing*. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499956/
- Keers, R. N., Williams, S. D., Cooke, J., & Ashcroft, D. M. (2020). Causes of medication administration errors in hospitals: A systematic review of quantitative and qualitative evidence. *Drug Safety*, 43(6), 517–538. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40264-020-00932-3
- World Health Organization. (2019). *Medication safety in high-risk situations*. WHO Global Patient Safety Challenge. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241511646
- Manias, E., & Geddes, J. (2023). Interprofessional approaches to reducing medication errors in healthcare. *Journal of Advanced Nursing*, 79(4), 1805–1817. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.15443
- Institute for Safe Medication Practices. (2021). *Best practices for hospitals*. https://www.ismp.org/guidelines/best-practices-hospitals