The correct identification of a patient is one of the essential pillars to ensure their safety. Patients must be accurately identified at all times, and active verification should be a constant routine for all professionals involved in their treatment in the hospital. Active verification involves medical professionals proactively and diligently participating to confirm a patient’s identity and other pertinent data.

The Spanish Ministry of Health Strategy indicates that approximately 13% of reported errors in surgical procedures and 67% of those associated with blood transfusions are linked to patient misidentification (Ministry of Health, 2016). These errors not only represent a danger to patient safety, but can also undermine public confidence in the healthcare system and its practitioners.

Implementing measures to ensure accurate patient identification is one of the fundamental practices recommended by various international patient safety organizations, such as the World Alliance for Patient Safety, which is supported by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Measures currently implemented in hospitals include:

• Implement identification through secure and comfortable wristbands or bracelets, available in various sizes and automatically generated from the information system. These will carry universal data such as full name, date of birth, health card or ID card number, and medical history number.
• Use at least two different identifiers, such as last name and first name, date of birth, medical record or health card number, avoiding the use of bed or room numbers.
• Methods of verifying patient identity prior to any procedure, and training staff on the proper identification process and its importance prior to any risky intervention.
• Clear protocols addressing the identification of patients with identification difficulties or those with the same name should be developed and disseminated.

Despite the implementation of the aforementioned measures to ensure secure patient identification, certain unintentional errors still persist due to low security in patient identity verification.

The use of bracelets, while useful, does not completely eliminate identification errors and has limitations. Some common problems include:

• Physical condition of wristbands: Wristbands may become damaged, stained, altered, wrinkled, or improperly printed, compromising their legibility and effectiveness.
• Dependence on physical presence: These bracelets are only effective when the patient is physically present.
• Errors in placement: Staff may mistakenly place a wristband on the wrong patient.
• Costs: The initial investment to implement the wristband system is significant, and there are ongoing costs associated with maintenance and repairs.
• Risk of tampering: Wristbands can be exchanged, shared, stolen or counterfeited.
• Physical limitations: Some patients cannot wear bracelets due to conditions such as casts or swelling.

These limitations continue to cause significant and serious consequences for both patients and hospitals, such as:

• Damage to patient’s health: Patient misidentification can lead to a number of health problems, such as incorrect medication administration, misdiagnosis, or unnecessary or incorrect medical procedures. These errors can result in physical, emotional and even death of the patient.

• Patient identity theft fraud: Facilitating identity theft, exposing patients to financial and legal risks. Criminals could exploit patients’ medical information to obtain medical treatment or services, or to commit financial fraud.

• Increased financial expense: Errors in patient identification can result in incorrect treatments, additional tests and prolonged hospitalizations, leading to increased healthcare costs. In addition, hospitals may face lawsuits and additional costs associated with resolving identification errors.
• Second victims: Identification errors also affect the medical and nursing staff involved. After making a mistake, healthcare professionals may experience feelings of guilt, anxiety and stress.
• Loss of prestige for the hospital and its doctors: Inaccuracy in patient identification may be perceived as an indication of incompetence or carelessness on the part of the medical and nursing staff, which can damage public confidence in the institution and affect the doctor-patient relationship.

To guarantee the correct identification of patients in all necessary processes, the most effective solution is the implementation of biometric technologies, thus ensuring the veracity and accuracy of identity.

Upon arrival at the hospital, the patient can be identified by fingerprint, iris or face in the admission area. From there, the healthcare staff verifies their identity using the same biometric technology before performing any medical procedure. This process is simple, integrates seamlessly with hospital software and provides a high level of security.

Although it is not essential to use biometric identification at all points in the hospital, it is advisable to implement it in critical areas where an error could have serious consequences for patient health. In the next article, we will take a closer look at the use of biometrics in hospitals and the most suitable areas for its implementation.

Find out how Verázial ID Health can help you ensure patient identification.

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