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Medicines use in hospitalised children: current status and outcome after an intervention

S N Thiyahiny1, M G Sathiadas, K Sanchayan

  • 1Faculty of Medicine, University of Jaffna,Jaffna, Sri Lanka. thiyahiny_sunil@hotmail.com.

The Ceylon Medical Journal
|October 12, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Rational use of medicines (RUM) in children is challenging. A study found that passive interventions like training and formulary distribution were ineffective in improving RUM in Sri Lankan children.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric pharmacotherapy
  • Health services research

Background:

  • Rational use of medicines (RUM) in pediatric populations presents unique challenges compared to adults.
  • Limited data exists on RUM in children within Sri Lanka.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the current status of RUM in children in Sri Lanka.
  • To determine the effectiveness of a combined intervention in enhancing RUM in pediatric patients.

Main Methods:

  • A non-randomized controlled before-and-after study was conducted in two pediatric hospital units.
  • An intervention group received one-time training and a pediatric formulary, while a control group did not.
  • Fourteen indicators, including WHO guidelines and investigator-developed metrics, were used to assess medicine use at baseline, three months, and one year post-intervention.

Main Results:

  • At baseline, 9 out of 14 indicators were satisfactory in both units.
  • Post-intervention, only three indicators showed favorable changes: recorded prescription reasons, treatment without regular medicines, and appropriate paracetamol dosing.
  • The use of abbreviations in prescriptions undesirably increased in the intervention unit compared to the control unit.

Conclusions:

  • Passive interventions, such as training and formulary provision, appear insufficient to improve RUM in children.
  • General medicine use indicators may not adequately capture the specific complexities of pediatric pharmacotherapy.
Abstract

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