5 Medication Administration Rights and Principles - GoodRx (2024)

For many people, taking medications is a necessary part of life. You may have medications that you take at home or manage for loved ones. Or you may be in a situation where you receive medications at a hospital or clinic.

For healthcare professionals, administering medications is a daily task. And while medication administration may seem straightforward, errors can sometimes happen. Mistakes like giving out the wrong medication, dose, or route are a few examples. But following the basics of medication administration can help reduce these potential errors.

The same principles that help keep you safe in healthcare institutions can also help keep you safe at home. Here we’ll review what you should know about administering medications safely.

What are the 5 rights of medication administration?

Medication administration is an important part of delivering healthcare. It refers to the process of giving or receiving a medication. And when it comes to this process, accuracy is key to preventing potential medication errors.

A simple checklist covering the basics — referred to as the five “rights” — is a standard for safe medication administration. These “rights” include:

1. The right patient

2. The right drug

3. The right time

4. The right dose

5. The right route

Healthcare professionals often think about this checklist in medical settings. But you can apply these five “rights” to how you take your medications at home. They’re also important if you’re managing someone else’s medications, such as a child or older adult. Going through this checklist can help you prevent medication errors, too.

What are the different routes of medication administration?

One of the five “rights” covered above is “right route.” This refers to the route of administration — how a medication is given or taken.

When you think of taking medications, swallowing tablets or capsules likely comes to mind. The oral route is the most common. But there are many other routes of administration. We list several of them in the table below.

Note: This is not a full list. You can access a complete list of routes of medication administration on the FDA’s official website.

Each route has benefits and risks. Your healthcare provider will determine the best route of administration for you. Sometimes, this depends on where you’ll be receiving the medication and what you’re taking it for.

For example, certain medications are only administered in a medical setting, like a hospital or clinic. These are typically injections that require a trained healthcare professional. But some injections you may be able to administer yourself at home. In this case, you’ll typically receive training for how to administer it properly.

How to administer medication properly

Administering medications properly is a key element of safe medication use. Whether you’re self-administering a medication at home or receiving a medication in a healthcare setting, the steps are similar.

If you’re administering a medication at home, here are a few tips:

• Read all medication labels carefully.

• Follow the label’s instructions, as well as specific instructions from your healthcare provider or pharmacist.

• If any equipment comes with the medication (like an inhaler or syringe), follow instructions to operate or use it properly.

• Confirm that you’re taking the right medication at the right dose, the right way (like with or without food), and at the right time (for example, morning or night). This can also include separating it from other medications you’re taking that could cause an interaction.

Your healthcare team follows a similar process for administering medications in the hospital or clinic. But they also need to verify that the medication is going to the right patient. That’s because they often take care of multiple patients at a time. This may also apply if you’re managing medications for multiple people in your household.

If you’re having difficulty staying on top of your (or your loved one’s) medications, a medication organizer and other tools, like reminder apps, can help. And your healthcare provider or pharmacist can answer any questions about how to administer the medications properly.

Common issues and mistakes

Despite our best efforts, medication errors still happen. In the U.S., up to 9,000 people die every year because of medication errors. This includes errors related to the five “rights” above, as well as missed allergies, interactions, and health conditions that can cause a problem.

Healthcare providers can make mistakes when administering medications. And these errors can happen at several points in the process, including prescribing, dispensing, and administering medications. It’s also possible to make mistakes when administering medications at home.

Common issues and mistakes that can lead to medication errors include:

• Giving the wrong medication because the medication names were confused

• Administering incorrect doses of medications

• Mistakenly using expired medication

• Not properly verifying allergies

• Missing important drug interactions

• Storing or transporting a medication in a risky environment, potentially affecting its safety or effectiveness

• Giving a medication to the wrong person

• Giving a medication at the wrong time

• Giving a medication via the wrong route of administration

Sometimes medication errors are minor and don’t cause problems. In other cases, they can lead to serious health consequences.

Thankfully, many healthcare professionals have additional safeguards, including electronic systems, to decrease the risk of errors. These safeguards and careful attention to detail can help prevent common mistakes from happening.

Organizations such as the Institute for Safe Medication Practices are devoted to improving medication safety and reducing errors. Medication errors can be reported to them directly. Error reporting is an important part of improving medication safety. Errors that occur may highlight gaps in current processes that may be error-prone.