Anesthesia providers have numerous medications
available for each anesthetic and depend on the color and
labeling of the vials and the position of the medications
in the carts to find the medications needed efficiently.
These identification techniques create opportunities for
human error; medication vials and colors can change,
and pharmacy staff could potentially place a medication
in an incorrect location in the medication dispensing
system. Vigilance is stressed every day in anesthesia, but a
system that allows providers to choose, prepare, label and
administer medications without secondary verification is
inefficient and prone to mistakes.