SafetyIssues Personal and Public Safety News Articles: Medication Mix-ups Hurt More Kids

Medication Mix-ups Hurt More Kids
================================================================================
Staff writer for safetyissues.com on 04/06/08 07:50:00
 
This estimate means about 540,000 children are affected each year by these
errors.
The study was conducted by the National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare
Quality. Researchers detected an incidence of 11 drug-related harmful events for
every 100 children in hospitals using the new method. In the traditional
detection procedure, the estimate was only 2 such events per 100 hospitalized
children. The new estimate also accounts for situations where a child went
through drug-treatment errors more than once.
The new procedure devised in the study follows a list of 15 indicators or
“triggers” on the medical charts of child patients, which point to possible
drug-related harm. This list includes administration of certain antidotes to
counter drug overdoses, particular side effects and specific lab tests.
The traditional procedures cover only non-specific reviews of patient charts and
voluntary reporting of errors by hospitals.
Some of the triggers are:
* Use of the drug naloxone, an antidote to counteract overdose of morphine and
related painkillers. Over half of the problems found by the researchers involved
these powerful drugs.
* Use of vitamin K, which counteracts an overdose of the blood thinner Coumadin.
* Use of a blood test that detects insulin overdoses.
* Use of a lab test that detects blood-clotting problems that can arise from an
overdose of the blood thinner heparin and related drugs.
A random selection of 960 medical charts for child patients was reviewed by the
research team. The children were treated at children’s hospitals across the
U.S. in 2002.
The likelihood exists that the problem may be bigger than the 1:15 ratio
suggested in the study, because the study did not cover general community
hospitals where the majority of children needing hospitalization are admitted.
Safety Tips:
* Log each medication and every treatment (whether at home or in the hospital).
* Remember pediatric medication is based on body weight. Doctors calculated
dosages based on kilograms; parents often think in terms of pounds (1 pound =
454 grams; 1 kg = 2.203 pounds).
* Don’t be afraid or embarrassed to ask the caregiver what medication is being
given to your child and for what purpose.
* When going to the hospital, bring all medications in labeled bottles. This
will give doctors and nurses an exact idea of the drugs and doses being given to
your child.