What is medication reconciliation and when should it be performed?

Medication reconciliation is the process of creating and verifying a complete, accurate list of all medications a patient is taking, including prescriptions, over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, and supplements, and comparing it against new orders at every transition of care. Transitions include hospital admission, transfer between units, discharge, and any outpatient visit where medications change. The Joint Commission requires medication reconciliation as a patient safety standard because discrepancies during transitions cause up to 50 percent of medication errors.