Sherlene Christen Brings More Than 30 Years Experience to Leading Formulary Management, HazDrugs Safety Information SaaS Provider

You are most likely familiar with and may have struggled with OSHA’s Hazard Communication (HazCom) Plan standard. In fact, it ranks no. 2 on OSHA’s list of the “Top 10 Most Frequently Cited Standards” - meaning it’s vital to workplace safety but also challenging for organizations to comply with. 

It is painfully tragic when a patient suffers injury or even death due to a med error. Often med errors occur because critical medication and protocol information is not accessible at the point of care, which is 100% avoidable and painfully unacceptable. 

The USP <800> serves as one source of truth for protecting healthcare workers from the dangerous effects of HDs. However, the implications in terms of cost and time needed to comply can vary depending on the type of medical facility. 

The USP <800> isn’t just another standard meant to make healthcare organizations scramble and comply; it actually provides benefits that protect the health of your staff. Here are the top five ways USP <800> is good for your health: 

A hospital’s formulary initially consisted of a simple book of medications approved for patient use in that particular organization. When hospitals made their formulary available online in the late 1990s, it was basically the same book, but now on a computer screen.

Spelling Out These Legal Terms in Hazardous Drugs Regulations

If you’re reading this, then you’re one of many healthcare workers who have second guessed the meanings of should, shall, and must in FDA, OSHA, and USP <800> regulations--or other legal documents as part of your work. 

It seems that you can't turn on the news without hearing about the next wave of COVID-19 that will soon travel across the U.S. Numbers are rising across the nation and there is again a great focus on the capacity of hospital systems to diagnose and treat sick patients, as well as maintain capacity for everyday operations outside of coronavirus care. 

While much of the discussion is on the ability to care for the increase in patients, we can't help but focus on the safety of healthcare workers as well. 

A shocking 8 million U.S. healthcare workers are potentially exposed to hazardous drugs (HDs) each year according to the CDC. In fact, a report in Pharmacy Times states, “compared with any other occupational setting, the health care setting uses the largest and most diverse array of agents that are hazardous to humans.” Not only are they exposed to a variety of hazardous agents every day, the effects may be compounded over the decades of their career.