Certified Medication Safety Officer (CMSO) Preparatory Course

Overview

Medication errors are a leading cause of injury and avoidable harm in the health care system across the world and remain a significant global health burden, with the World Health Organization estimating that medication-related harm accounts for over 42 billion USD annually worldwide. Accordingly, the WHO has advocated for Medication Without Harm as the theme for the third Global Patient Safety Challenge. Errors can occur at different stages of the medication use system, and despite advancement gaps persist at various levels: safety culture mindset, human factors integration, weak medication systems, knowledge on medication safety, proactive risk management, quality tools to use, and medication errors reporting and resolution. This preparatory course covers key domains addressing medication safety culture/science, human factors engineering, proper safety event investigation and analysis (RCA/FMEA), quality improvement methodologies for patient and medication safety, leadership and stakeholders’ involvement, integration of technology/informatics into medication safety, and safety culture building, and integrating medication safety into medication management and use. It is designed to equip pharmacists and healthcare professional with the required competencies and knowledge aligned with international standards such as the Institute for Safe Medication Practices and The Joint Commission to lead as frontliners and advocates for medication safety programs and successfully prepare for the CMSO certification.