Medication errors in hospitals, especially in intensive care units and oncology wards, remain a significant safety concern. Statistics from the German Association of Hospital Pharmacists indicate that up to five percent of drug administrations deviate from the prescribed regimen, and the complexity of intravenous therapies increases the likelihood of mistakes. The project undertaken by the Institute for Nanophotonics Göttingen, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMWK), aimed to develop a rapid, reliable method for identifying intravenous solutions and their concentrations to reduce such errors.

The core technical achievement of the project was the integration of Raman spectroscopy with refractometry and UV/Vis spectroscopy into a single automated measurement chain. A pump and mass‑flow controller delivered the test solution to a refractometer, a Raman spectrometer, and a spectrophotometer in series. The refractometer provided precise refractive index data, enabling discrimination between aqueous electrolyte solutions such as sodium chloride and potassium chloride—an area where Raman alone is insufficient. The Raman spectra supplied molecular fingerprints of the active pharmaceutical ingredients, while the UV/Vis detector quantified catecholamine concentrations that Raman could not resolve.

Using this system, the team investigated 269 distinct intravenous solutions, generating 1,617 individual data sets. Advanced chemometric techniques, including multivariate correlation analysis, were applied to the combined spectral and refractive‑index data. The results demonstrated successful identification of both the drug identity and its concentration for a wide range of medications, including cytostatic agents used in chemotherapy. In intensive‑care‑specific solutions, the identification accuracy was very high, with the exception of catecholamines; for these, the UV/Vis component provided the necessary concentration information. The overall performance of the combined Raman–refractometry approach surpassed the capabilities of each technique used alone, offering a robust solution for real‑time drug verification.

Beyond the laboratory, the project established a dedicated database infrastructure to store and retrieve the large volume of spectral data. This database supports rapid comparison against reference libraries, facilitating immediate decision‑making in clinical settings. The integration of the measurement hardware with the database represents a scalable platform that can be deployed in hospital pharmacies and infusion laboratories.

Collaboration within the project was led by the Institute for Nanophotonics Göttingen, which coordinated the experimental design, data acquisition, and analysis. While the report does not list additional institutional partners, the project’s scope and the involvement of the BMWK suggest a broader network of stakeholders, including clinical pharmacists and medical researchers, who contributed to defining the practical requirements and validating the system in realistic scenarios. The project spanned several years, culminating in a comprehensive report that documents the methodology, results, and potential for clinical implementation.

In summary, the project delivered a technically sound, integrated analytical workflow that combines Raman spectroscopy, refractometry, and UV/Vis detection to accurately identify intravenous medications and their concentrations. By addressing a critical safety gap in drug administration, the work offers a promising tool for reducing medication errors in intensive care and oncology, aligning with national patient‑rights initiatives and the broader goal of enhancing healthcare quality.