This document is intended for multi-professional clinical practitioners to use as a reference and source of information for the prescribing, reconstituting or administering injectable medicines. Chief Pharmacists, Medicines Safety Officers (MSO) and other pharmacy staff involved in the governance of injectable medicine should ensure that local policies are in line with the guidance contained within this document. This document provides guidance on the multiple use of injectable medicines (vials, ampoules, infusion bags) in clinical areas. The term multiple use includes use of a single container of an injectable medicine
- To administer more than one dose to a single patient
and/or
- To administer one or more doses to more than one patient
The advice in this document is in addition to and supportive of principles outlined by NPSA 20 “Promoting the Safer Use of Injectable Medicines and further defined in 2017 by the QA Advice Note to Chief Pharmacists i.e. any injectable prepared in a clinical area should be administered immediately (within 30 minutes) and administration should be complete in less than 24 hours.