BCMA Project-Questions/Concerns

At Kings County Hospital Center, we are working on BCMA project and have some concerns and will appreciate if some one can answer(expressing own experience) these following questions. Thanks.

BCMA Questionnaire

1. Do you have Bedside Barcode Medication Administration?
If yes, for how long?

2. Please describe what process or processes are used to barcode medications:
a. Do you use an outside vendor? Which drug types?
b. Do you prepack and barcode in-house? Which drug types?
c. Do you use the manufacturer's barcode already on the product? Which drug types?

3. Please describe the barcode format or formats used for medications?
a. Linear? Which drug types?
b. Data Matrix? Which drug types?

4. What information is contained within the barcode for medications:
a. NDCor unique identifier?
b. Expiration Date?
c. Lot number?
d. Other?

5. How are high-usage, unit dose medication vials barcoded, for example Heparin 1 mL vials?

6. How do you barcode multi-dose vials, for example Insulin?

7. How are controlled substances included in the Bedside Barcode Medication Administration process?

8. Are any medication types excluded from BCMA?

9. What percentage of medications administered to patients undergo the BCMA process?

10. How are medications not supplied by Pharmacy included, for example liter bags of D5W supplied by Central Supply?

11. Please describe your challenges in adopting BCMA?

Jalil A. Minhas R.Ph.
Assistant Director of Pharmacy
Kings County Hospital Center
451 Clarkson Ave. Brooklyn, NY 11203
Tel. 718-245-5528