Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 27, 2026
06:59
A Novel Approach for the Administration of Medications and Fluids in Emergency Scenarios and Settings
Published on: November 9, 2016
30.3K
Challenges of managing pediatric polypharmacy in a pediatric complex care program: A qualitative pilot study
Journal of the American Pharmacists Association : Japha
|March 24, 2025
Summary
Managing pediatric polypharmacy in children with medical complexity requires careful collaboration among care teams. Integrating pediatric pharmacists can mitigate safety risks and improve medication management.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Healthcare
- Clinical Pharmacy
- Complex Care Management
Background:
- Pediatric polypharmacy is essential for children with medical complexity (CMC) but can lead to medication-related problems.
- Coordination of polypharmacy management by pediatric care teams is not well understood, hindering intervention design.
Purpose of the Study:
- To understand how multidisciplinary teams manage pediatric polypharmacy in a large outpatient pediatric complex care program.
- To identify challenges and opportunities for improving polypharmacy management for CMC.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative pilot study involving pediatric clinicians in prescribing and non-prescribing roles.
- Thematic content analysis to synthesize findings and identify key themes.
Main Results:
- Pediatric polypharmacy presents unique safety risks for CMC.
- Effective management necessitates collaboration between distinct clinical roles for medication tasks.
- Multiple subspecialty prescribers complicate management and responsibility assignment.
Conclusions:
- Interventions require a multi-level approach: centralized medication documentation, task delegation by expertise, and cross-organizational coordination.
- Integrated pediatric pharmacist support is recommended to address management challenges and improve safety.
More Related Videos
00:04A Clinical Trial Assessing the Safety, Efficacy, and Delivery of Olive-Oil-Based Three-Chamber Bags for Parenteral Nutrition
Published on: September 20, 2019
10.6K
11:17Multiplex Therapeutic Drug Monitoring by Isotope-dilution HPLC-MS/MS of Antibiotics in Critical Illnesses
Published on: August 30, 2018
12.8K
Related Concept Videos
01:29Drug Dosing: Infants and Children
Pediatric patient dosages diverge from adults due to disparities in body surface area, total body water, and extracellular fluid per kilogram of body weight. The dosing regimen considers the variations in pharmacokinetics and pharmacology across distinct age groups, encompassing preterm newborns, infants, young children, older children, and adolescents. Calculation of pediatric patient doses is predicated on determining body surface area, which exhibits a superior correlation with the child's...
01:23Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Overview and Drug Absorption
Understanding the physiological differences in the pediatric population is crucial for effective pharmacotherapy. Neonates, infants, and children exhibit significant variations in gastric pH, gastric emptying time, intestinal transit time, and biliary function. These variations profoundly affect oral drug absorption, necessitating a nuanced approach to pediatric dosing.Neonates present with a unique physiological profile, having a gastric pH greater than 4 and faster and more irregular gastric...
01:17Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Drug Distribution
Drug distribution in the pediatric population exhibits unique challenges and considerations due to the physiological differences between children, particularly neonates and infants, and adults. A crucial aspect of pediatric pharmacology is understanding how these differences impact the pharmacokinetics of various drugs, necessitating age-specific dosing strategies to ensure efficacy and safety.Neonates and infants have a higher total body water content, ~75%–90% of their body weight, compared...
01:24Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Drug Metabolism
In pediatric care, understanding the nuances of hepatic drug metabolism is crucial, as it significantly differs from that of adults. This divergence is primarily due to the developmental stage of drug-metabolizing enzymes, which affects how medications are processed in the body. In neonates, for instance, the activity of Phase I enzymes—critical for the initial breakdown of drugs—is markedly reduced, functioning at just 20–40% of the levels seen in adults. This reduction poses a challenge in...
01:26Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Drug Excretion
In pediatric medicine, understanding the renal function and drug elimination nuances is crucial for administering safe and effective treatments. Newborns, in particular, display markedly slower renal functions than adults, profoundly affecting how drugs are cleared from their bodies. This slower drug clearance requires clinicians to extend the dosing intervals for many medications to prevent drug accumulation and toxicity while ensuring therapeutic efficacy.One key area where these adjustments...
01:26Pharmaceutical Poisoning: Potential Scenarios
Pharmaceutical poisoning can occur through various channels, impacting an estimated 2 million hospitalized patients in the U.S. annually with serious adverse drug responses. These scenarios encompass both therapeutic uses, such as drug toxicity, where even standard dosages can lead to severe central nervous system depression, and non-therapeutic exposures, including accidental ingestion by children, and environmental and occupational exposures.Unintentional poisonings often involve exploratory...