Partnered Pharmacist Medication Charting for Children and Young People: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Partnered pharmacist medication charting (PPMC) reduces medication errors in Australian adult hospitals. This study evaluated the impact of PPMC on paediatric emergency department (ED) presentations compared to early best possible medication history (BPMH) and usual care.

A retrospective cohort study was conducted at a tertiary paediatric hospital with electronic medication management systems, comparing three sequential models of care across three time periods: usual care (T1), early BPMH by an ED pharmacist (T2), and PPMC (T3). The primary outcome was the proportion of patients with one or more medication errors, assessed for clinical significance by a blinded expert panel. Secondary outcomes included length of stay (LOS) and medication-related documentation completion.

The percentage of patients with one or more medication errors identified was 70.6% in usual care (T1, n = 126), 50.8% in early BPMH (T2, n = 122), and 5.8% in PPMC (T3, n = 103). The absolute risk reduction for T3 PPMC compared to T1 Usual care (ARR T1 vs. T3) was 0.65 (95% CI 0.558-0.742) with one medication error prevented for every two patients receiving PPMC (NNT = 2, 95% CI 2-2). The median LOS was 3.3 days in usual care (T1) and 2.3 days in PPMC (T3) (p = 0.012).

PPMC substantially reduced medication errors and the prevalence of high or extreme risk errors. The benefit extended beyond error prevention, with improvements in medication reconciliation, dosing weight documentation, and allergy review, and an association with shorter LOS. These findings support PPMC as a scalable approach to medication safety in paediatric hospitals.