Effectiveness of education programs about oral antibiotic suspensions in pediatric outpatient services

The effectiveness of education programs for pediatric patients receiving oral antibiotic suspension was unclear.

When pediatric patients were prescribed antibiotics in powder form for suspension at the outpatient clinic of a university hospital, the responsible 150 caregivers were consecutively allocated into three education programs: Group 1 subjects read the package insert; Group 2 read a photograph-designed educational sheet; and Group 3 received a face-to-face medication education from a pharmacist with the photograph-designed educational sheet. The effectiveness of the three education programs for pediatric patients' caregivers was evaluated using a questionnaire comprised of 12 questions.

The proportions of the caregivers in Groups 1, 2 and 3 who answered the questionnaire perfectly with 100% accuracy were 2%, 14% and 74%, respectively (p < 0.001). The means ± standard deviations of the overall time spent by the caregivers in Groups 1, 2 and 3 were 353 ± 135, 334.2 ± 115.1, and 281.4 ± 114 seconds, respectively (p = 0.013). Clearly, the pharmacist's face-to-face mediation education program provided effective and time-saving medication instructions for pediatric oral antibiotics. The specific questions regarding easy-to-make errors related to the reconstitution step (p < 0.001), water volume for reconstitution (p < 0.001), storage temperature (p = 0.004) and shelf life (p = 0.002) of stock powder, whether the drug should be taken before or after a meal (p < 0.001), and the method and volume for syrup measurement (p < 0.001).

This study demonstrated that when compared to reading a package insert or education sheet, a pharmacist's verbal education with photographic education materials was significantly more effective and time-saving in providing caregivers with the correct knowledge of oral antibiotic suspensions in pediatrics.