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An interprofessional approach to improving paediatric medication safety
Moira Stewart1, Joanna Purdy, Neil Kennedy
1Department of Child Health, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland. m.c.stewart@qub.ac.uk
Insights
An interprofessional workshop improved undergraduate healthcare students' knowledge of paediatric medication safety and reduced medication errors. This collaborative learning approach enhances team working and communication skills for safer patient care.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Patient Safety
- Interprofessional Learning
Background:
- Medication errors in paediatric practice remain a significant patient safety concern.
- Effective team working and communication are crucial for safe clinical practice.
- Limited evidence exists on optimal teaching methods for these competencies in future healthcare practitioners.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and evaluate an interprofessional workshop for undergraduate students on paediatric drug prescribing and administration.
- To enhance knowledge, core competencies, communication, and team working skills.
- To address the gap in effective pedagogical approaches for medication safety.
Main Methods:
- An interprofessional, ward-based workshop was designed for 4th-year medical and 3rd-year nursing students.
- Learning was facilitated through practical application and collaborative activities.
- Evaluation used pre- and post-workshop questionnaires with open-ended responses.
Main Results:
- Students reported increased knowledge and awareness of paediatric medication safety and error causes (p < 0.001).
- Significant positive shifts in attitudes towards shared learning were observed, particularly in interprofessional settings.
- Qualitative data indicated improved communication, teamworking, and understanding of other professionals' roles.
Conclusions:
- An interprofessional approach to teaching drug prescribing and administration effectively bridges the knowledge-skills gap.
- This educational strategy has the potential to significantly improve the quality and safety of healthcare.
- Collaborative learning among diverse healthcare disciplines enhances medication safety competencies.
Background:
Safe drug prescribing and administration are essential elements within undergraduate healthcare curricula, but medication errors, especially in paediatric practice, continue to compromise patient safety. In this area of clinical care, collective responsibility, team working and communication between health professionals have been identified as key elements in safe clinical practice. To date, there is limited research evidence as to how best to deliver teaching and learning of these competencies to practitioners of the future.
Methods:
An interprofessional workshop to facilitate learning of knowledge, core competencies, communication and team working skills in paediatric drug prescribing and administration at undergraduate level was developed and evaluated. The practical, ward-based workshop was delivered to 4th year medical and 3rd year nursing students and evaluated using a pre and post workshop questionnaire with open-ended response questions.
Results:
Following the workshop, students reported an increase in their knowledge and awareness of paediatric medication safety and the causes of medication errors (p < 0.001), with the greatest increase noted among medical students. Highly significant changes in students' attitudes to shared learning were observed, indicating that safe medication practice is learnt more effectively with students from other healthcare disciplines. Qualitative data revealed that students' participation in the workshop improved communication and teamworking skills, and led to greater awareness of the role of other healthcare professionals.
Conclusion:
This study has helped bridge the knowledge-skills gap, demonstrating how an interprofessional approach to drug prescribing and administration has the potential to improve quality and safety within healthcare.
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