A technician tells you about a dispensing mix-up
PEBC OSCE practice station
Ethics, consent & capacity · 2 min to read · 7 min to perform
Respond to her, decide what needs to be done for the patient and the pharmacy, and agree next steps.
Mei Lin ZhaoDo you have a minute? I think I made a mistake yesterday afternoon and I'm really sorry. I don't know what to do.
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Open the full station (charts, voice, result letter) →The task
You are the pharmacist on duty in a busy community pharmacy. Your pharmacy technician, Mei Lin Zhao, asks to speak to you privately. She is uneasy and says she may have made a mistake yesterday. You are the only other person in the back area. Respond to her, decide what needs to be done for the patient and the pharmacy, and agree next steps. The assessor will not take part in the conversation.
What this station tests
- Thank the person who reports an error, and respond without blame.
- Patient safety comes first: contact the patient before analysing causes.
- Disclose honestly with an apology and a plan.
- Report and document, and fix the system: separate look-alike products and protect checking time.
- The pharmacist's check is a safeguard, so own your part.
Sources for the clinical content
- ISMP Canada: Medication safety in community pharmacies
- ISMP Canada: TALLman lettering
- NAPRA: Model Standards of Practice for Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians in Canada
An original practice scenario with invented patients. Not an exam question.