Survey of dispensing error practices in community pharmacies in Finland: A nationwide study

Most Finnish community pharmacies have an in-house dispensing error reporting system, but reporting has not been fully implemented in all pharmacies. The actual error reporting in most Finnish community pharmacies is not reliable and needs further development and coordination. Discussing dispensing errors and documenting dispensing errors were reported as the most ideal methods for managing errors. Respondents indicated a hope that dispensing errors would be discussed more frequently with the whole staff. These findings demonstrate that Finnish community pharmacists are aware of some of the principles of managing dispensing errors based on the system approach and the benefits of error reporting systems in managing dispensing errors.