NURSES at Basildon Hospital have come up with a way of improving safety and warding off constant interruptions when handing out medication to patients.

Staff across Basildon and Thurrock Hospitals are now wearing distinctive red aprons when preparing and administering pills.

The scheme was the idea of a group of nurses at the hospital, who wanted to reduce the chances of a mistake being made by medics when counting and handing out important drugs.

It is hoped when a nurse is wearing a red apron, fellow colleagues, patients and visitors will think ‘can it wait?’ before interrupting.

Jerusha Murdoch-Kelly, clinical practice facilitator at the hospital, said: “Just from our own experiences, we knew interruptions are frequent during drug rounds and even a momentary break in concentration can lead to mistakes being made.

“It is much safer if you can concentrate on the task in hand and not have to turn your attention to anything else.”

Before bringing in the scheme, health chiefs looked into how much time was being lost or wasted during drug rounds through interruptions.

Out of three wards looked at, one ward lost 117 minutes in valuable time due to interruptions, another lost 82 minutes and the third lost 43 minutes Miss Murdoch-Kelly said: “Most of the interruptions were from telephone calls and other members of staff, although patients and visitor queries were also a factor.”

After the red apron scheme was trialled, the first ward saved 74 minutes during drug rounds, the second 51 minutes and the third 28 minutes.

Patients and visitors have now been spoken to about the importance of the scheme and how it can stop mistakes being made.

Miss Murdoch-Kelly added: “Everyone we have spoken to has reacted extremely positively and recognised why it is important.”

The scheme is now being rolled out across all wards at the hospital.