The Consequences of Using Improper Labels
If you’ve ever ordered labels without examining your labeling needs, and the labels failed, then you know that there are consequences of using improper labels and why getting it right the first time is so important. To help hospitals and health centers choose the right labeling solutions, we look at four major — and, sometimes, quite costly — consequences that can result from using improper labels in hospital and health center settings.
- Critical Mistakes Administering Meds
One of the most serious consequences of using improper labels is accidentally administering the wrong medication and causing a patient to experience a negative health outcome. Even if the reaction isn’t fatal, it may require the person to have a longer hospital stay, which is something that no patient or his health insurer wants.
Smeared ink that is hard to read, improper adhesive that makes the label separate from the container, and faded labels whose print is barely readable are problems that contribute to administering wrong meds, or administering the right meds in the wrong dose. When labels are properly created for their task and environment, these problems disappear.
- Injured Patient Malpractice Claims
In 2012, $3.6 billion dollars was paid for 12,142 medical malpractice suits in the U.S. alone. Hospitals and health centers have insurance that helps protect them from malpractice claims, but policy premiums can rise significantly, if a certain number of payouts are made within a certain period of time.
It’s unfortunate that something as small as a medical label could pose such a big risk to the health of patients and healthcare entity finances. The good news is that choosing labels with the help of a label specialist can eliminate label problems that precipitate malpractice claims.
- Cost of Replacing Improper Labels
Because they have a myriad of daily labeling needs, hospitals and health centers often order medical labels in bulk. For large-scale users, bulk orders are a great way to cut costs. However, if improper labels are selected, the cost saving value flies out the window.
If a large label order has the wrong specifications, unopened boxes may be returnable, but your organization will likely eat the cost of the open box, whose contents are useless and unfit for resale. It becomes the box of labels that mysteriously sits in the copy room closet for the next 15 years.
Need New Labeling Solutions?
If so, Shamrock Labels would like the opportunity to present you with solutions that match your requirements. Choosing the right labels requires considering label characteristics in relation to the labeling application. This is a consideration we’ll help you make. Then, we can suggest a stock label solution, or a solution that’s customized for your needs.
To get started on receiving best-in-class labels for your hospital or health center’s labeling requirements, please call us today at (800) 323-0249, or fill out our contact form, to contact a product specialist. We look forward to learning about your organization and seeing what we can do to improve upon the medical labels you use for critical applications.