Performing a preliminary hazard analysis applied to administration of injectable drugs to infants

Area of Science:

• Pediatric patient safety
• Healthcare risk management
• Clinical pharmacology

Background:

• Hospital medication errors, particularly in pediatric intravenous drug preparation and administration, range from 13% to 84%.
• Hazardous events in pediatric drug administration pose significant risks to patient safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate potential hazardous events during drug injection preparation and administration in a pediatric department.
• To develop a risk reduction plan for pediatric medication errors.

Main Methods:

• A multidisciplinary working group utilized the preliminary hazard analysis (PHA) method over five months (April-August 2014).
• The study focused on infants aged 28 days to 2 years.
• STATCART APR software was employed for results analysis, identifying hazards and proposing control measures.

Main Results:

• Thirty-four hazardous situations were identified, with 17 deemed very critical, leading to 69 risk scenarios.
• Following the implementation of corrective actions, scenarios with unacceptable risk decreased from 17.4% to 0%.
• Scenarios with acceptable risk under control improved from 46.4% to 43.5%.

Conclusions:

• Preliminary hazard analysis (PHA) is an effective tool for prioritizing corrective actions and implementing control measures to mitigate risks.
• PHA serves as a valuable complement to existing a posteriori risk management strategies in healthcare settings.