A strategy to prevent chemo errors includes:

• A. Verification of patient's height in inches
• B. Independent dose calculation
• C. Use of full trade name of the drug
• D. Use of abbreviations for drug clarification

Answer: (B)

Independent dose calculation serves as a critical safety check in chemotherapy administration. Dosing chemo often depends on patient-specific factors like body surface area or weight, and small arithmetic mistakes or misinterpretation of units (for example mg/m^2 vs mg/kg) can lead to large, dangerous errors. When a second clinician, commonly a pharmacist, independently verifies the calculated dose using the same patient data, it acts as a safeguard to catch these mistakes before the drug is given. This practice helps ensure the dose aligns with the protocol and institutional guidelines.

Verifying height alone doesn’t capture all the factors needed for safe dosing. Relying on the full trade name of a drug can cause confusion with look-alike formulations, and using abbreviations for drug clarification can increase misreading and mix-ups.