Introducing an adverse drug event manager

Objectives Under reporting of adverse drug events (ADEs) is a global challenge. ADEs contribute to increased morbidity and mortality and many systems have been tried to overcome the lack of reporting. The aim of our study was to introduce an ADE manager (ADEM) at a university hospital in Denmark to increase the number of ADEs reported. Methods An ADEM was introduced in five medical wards at a university hospital in Denmark in the period October 2010-September 2011. The function of the ADEM was to complete the ADE report, whenever a physician required assistance. By using electronic health records, the ADEM was able to collect the necessary information about the ADE and complete a report to the Danish Medicines Agency (DMA), now part of Danish Health and Medicines Authority. Results The clinicians spent 2-3 min reporting the ADE to the ADEM, who spent 30 min completing the report. The study contributed to an increase in reported ADEs from 30 in 2009 to 162 in the 12-month project period at the university hospital. Conclusions An ADEM relieves the clinicians of the administrative burden of reporting ADEs and increases the number of ADEs reported to the DMA.