What is the purpose of "tall man" lettering in medication safety?

The purpose of "tall man" lettering in medication safety is to help prevent confusion between similarly named drugs by highlighting critical differences. This technique involves capitalizing certain letters in drug names that are similar to one another, making it easier for healthcare professionals to distinguish between them at a glance. For example, the names "hydroxyzine" and "hydroxyurea" may be visually confusing, but emphasizing the differing segments—“XYZ” in hydroxyzine—makes it clearer which medication is being referred to.

By improving clarity in written medication orders and labels, "tall man" lettering plays a vital role in reducing medication errors, which are particularly common with drugs that have similar names. This strategy is an important part of medication safety protocols to protect patients from potential harm linked to confusion over medication names.