The sociomateriality of prescribing feedback interventions: A scoping review

Prescribing errors frequently threaten patient safety, with early career doctors writing most prescriptions. Prescribing feedback interventions can improve the prescribing capabilities of early career doctors. These typically involve interactions between people and materials; however, these relations tend to be under-researched due to a general focus on human behaviours. This study aimed to trace the sociomaterial relations that produce and sustain prescribing feedback interventions for early career doctors in hospital settings.

We conducted a scoping review of eight databases (PubMed Central, CINAHL [EBSCOhost], Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, ProQuest Education Database, ERIC and Cochrane) from 2013 to 2024, following Arksey and O'Malley's five-step framework. Key data were extracted and reflexive thematic analysis generated themes across included papers.

Nineteen studies were included. None took an explicit sociomaterial perspective. The main social actors were hospital pharmacists, other doctors, nurses and advanced practice professionals. The main material actors were paper-based and electronic medication charts, medical guidelines and policies, prescribing error summaries, feedback tools, physical spaces and other material artefacts. We generated four themes: (1) sociomaterial relations of feedback information, (2) sociomaterial relations of feedback interaction, (3) sociomaterial relations of goal setting and planning and (4) sociomaterial relations that shape division of labour.

Prescribing feedback interventions are assembled and sustained in busy clinical environments through sociomaterial relations. Materials are active in producing the work of prescribing feedback interventions and the move to electronic records and e-prescribing changes the sociomaterial affordances. Sociomaterial approaches show strong potential to improve prescribing feedback interventions and ultimately benefit patients but more research is needed.