By John Flood

A recent government agency report requested that El Camino Hospital take immediate action to address issues concerning the way its pharmacy administers medications to patients.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) surveyed the hospital in August to review a previous plan of correction related to El Camino Hospital pharmacy operations. During the survey, representatives found additional deficiencies in the way the hospital pharmacy managed and controlled medications.

Since the report was issued, the hospital has complied with a plan of correction, said Jon Friedenberg, vice president at El Camino Hospital.

“CMS came out in August and found that we were making significant progress (in pharmacy management issues),” Friedenberg said. “But they found additional issues. We addressed all the issues that they wanted to address. This chapter with CMS is over.”

Previously the pharmacy and hospital staff had difficulties transitioning to a new computer-aided hospital management system dubbed ECHO, Friedenberg said. ECHO was introduced at the hospital in March.

“There were physicians who were concerned and frustrated with ECHO. That was what probably generated the call,” he said, in response to a question about who might have called CMS with complaints.

“No patient was harmed,” Friedenberg said. “It’s unlikely the complaint came from a patient.”

Friedenberg said the hospital makes every effort to improve patient safety.

“We saw this (CMS report) as a way to make improvements in our clinical pharmacy practices,” he said. “We expect El Camino Hospital in every case, with every patient and in every department, to meet the highest standards.”

Hospitals are routinely

scrutinized by state and federal agencies, according to

Friedenberg. “We’re a heavily

regulated industry … and that means surveyors from federal

and state agencies come in on a regular basis. It’s a fact of life in hospitals. All of these are surprise inspections. They can ask any employee a question at any time.”