Final answer:
Medication administration errors include a medical assistant's mistakes and adverse drug reactions, which can range from immediate severe consequences to subtle long-term effects. Accurate dosage calculations by medical personnel are crucial to prevent harm or fatalities, and overdoses often occur due to the misuse or abuse of legal or illegal drugs.
Step-by-step explanation:
Errors in medication administration can result from a variety of factors, such as a medical assistant's error, which might include erroneous patient identification or incorrect medication dosage. Medication contraindications refer to specific situations where a drug should not be used because it could be harmful to the patient. Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) cover a broad spectrum of unwanted effects and can have various origins, including prescription or over-the-counter medicines taken in doses that are too high or overdoses of illegal drugs.
Changes in biochemical feedback mechanisms due to drug interactions can lead to negative outcomes, sometimes severe, such as immediate death or more subtle effects that may not be noticed until much later. Medical and pharmaceutical personnel must be vigilant in calculating accurate dosages to avoid such occurrences. An overdose can happen with the misuse of medication, either by drug abuse or by not following a healthcare professional's advice.