Joint Commission Sentinel Event Alert: Preventing Infection from the Misuse of Vials

​The overall misuse of medication vials primarily involves the reuse of single-dose vials, which typically lack preservatives; therefore, using these vials more than once, or on more than one individual, carries substantial risks for bacterial contamination and infection, states a June 16, 2014, Joint Commission Sentinel Event Alert. Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that since 2001, at least 49 outbreaks have occurred due to the mishandling of injectable medical products, requiring more than 150,000 individuals to be notified of potential exposure and tested.