Schreiner MediPharm, a Germany-based global provider of specialty pharmaceutical labeling products for more than 60 years, has developed a new cost-effective label that helps reduce the likelihood of parenteral dispensing errors. The company’s Pharma-Comb Single Wrap (SW) label, a new member of the Pharma-Comb product family, allows a more reliable, simpler syringe dispensing and administration process through a combination of elements that enhance instructional clarity.The new product is particularly suited for labeling small containers for single-dose applications, such as ampoules and vials.

Each year, an estimated 7,000 people in the United States die as a result of inappropriately dispensed drugs and, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), every third medication error can be attributed to labeling deficiencies. To minimize the risk of dangerous medication errors, the FDA issued a Draft Guidance in April 2013 for the design of pharmaceutical labels and packaging that encourage reliable and simple dispensing. Schreiner MediPharm’s Pharma-Comb SW labels meet these recommendations and assist healthcare professionals in properly dispensing medicines.

Pharma-Comb SW labels provide sufficient space for legally required information, as well as for variable data inscription and barcode printing, the company says. Product information is easy to read, and barcode scanning is simple.The reverse side of the detachable section is designed so it can be applied to a syringe in a flag-like fashion that leaves graduation lines uncovered. For greater ease of use when wearing gloves, the detachable part slightly lifts for easy peel-off upon label opening.

“In its draft guidance, the FDA cites the potential value of transferrable labels for injectable medications, emphasizing that the filling of solutions into unlabeled disposable syringes carries a particularly high risk of medication errors, namely those involving the wrong drug or strength,” says Gene Dul, president of Schreiner MediPharm U.S. “The Pharma-Comb Single Wrap labels help avoid such instances by equipping the primary container with a label that includes an integrated peel-off section. This detachable part is instantly available at the point of product preparation, and can be easily and reliably attached to an unmarked syringe.”