Dorothy Westerman
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Apr 14/04) - There is little chance a medication mix-up could occur at Stanton Territorial Hospital the way it did last month in Calgary where two people died, says a hospital official.

Robin Greig, manager of diagnostic and therapeutic services at Stanton, said the drug in question, potassium chloride, is clearly marked for use to prevent confusion.

"We have pre-mixed bags of KCI (potassium chloride) in different concentrations," Greig said.

Pharmacy protocols are currently in place for the proper dispensing of medications, he said.

While Stanton is currently seeking to recruit both a staff pharmacist and a pharmacy supervisor, Greig said there is a pharmacist working on contract.

"It's a critical service and we should have two on staff. We're trying to maintain it."

Greig said pharmacists are trained professionals at the university level and have the responsibility of reviewing physician's orders, checking for potential adverse reactions in a patient's history and meeting with patients to discuss a drug profile.

He said it is difficult to ascertain what could have caused the drug mix-up in Calgary, which caused the death of two patients resulting in an investigation.

"But it's always a concern," he said.

Potassium chloride is commonly used to treat low potassium in patients.

Complications include heart stoppage with excess intakes or irregular heart beat when insufficient doses are administered.

Numerous deaths in both Canada and the United States have been reported because of the drug's improper usage.