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Improving Medication Safety at Home: A Systematic Review of Educational Interventions for Parents of Paediatric

S Giva1,2,3, F MacDonald3, B Cleary3,4

  • 1Neonatology Department, Rotunda Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.

Acta Paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992)
|January 11, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Structured educational interventions significantly improve caregiver medication knowledge and reduce paediatric medication errors at home. These strategies enhance patient safety and caregiver confidence post-discharge.

Area of Science:

  • Paediatric Patient Safety
  • Medication Management
  • Health Literacy

Background:

  • Medication errors pose a significant risk to paediatric patients.
  • Limited evidence exists on effective caregiver education for medication management post-discharge.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To systematically review the effectiveness of caregiver-focused educational interventions.
  • To assess impacts on paediatric medication knowledge and errors.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic review following PRISMA guidelines (2005-2025).
  • Included studies on paediatric patients (0-16 years) discharged on medication.
  • Evaluated caregiver-focused educational interventions.

Main Results:

  • Seven studies (RCTs, ITS, cross-sectional) with 1293 participants.
  • Multi-component interventions improved knowledge (p<0.001) and reduced dosing errors (12%-54%).
  • Adherence showed improvement in one study; meta-analysis was precluded by heterogeneity.

Conclusions:

  • Structured educational interventions enhance caregiver understanding and reduce home medication errors.
  • Literacy-sensitive materials, counselling, and dosing tools improve paediatric patient safety.
  • Further research needed on long-term impact and cost-effectiveness.
Abstract

Keywords:
caregiver educationdischarge counsellinghealth literacymedication errorspaediatrics

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