Browsing by Subject "barriers"

Children´s medication treatment has many special features that predispose to medication errors, such as dosing of medications according to weight or age and the off-label use of medications. In the medical treatment of children high-alert medicinal substances are used and the incorrect use of which can cause harm to the patient. The aim of this study was to identify medication errors in pediatric patients of parenteral nutrition products (PN) and concentrated electrolytes, which belong to high-alert medicinal substances in different stages of medication management and use process and also to identify the contributing factors behind the errors in order to promote medication safety. The data for the retrospective registry study were made up of HaiPro accident reports (n=528) related to PN, lipids, concentrated electrolytes, solutions affecting electrolyte balance and dialysis fluids made in the period 2018-2020 at the Children`s and Adolescent`s hospital in Helsinki from which the reports related to high-alert medications were identified (n=317). ISMP´s (Institute for Safe Medication Practices) and JCI´s (Joint Comission International) lists of high-alert medications was used to limit the data. The final research material was further limited to reports (n=254) in which the medicinal substance appeared more than ten times in the entire material. The data were analyzed quantitatively to describe the frequencies (n) and percentages (%) of PN and concentrated electrolytes, and qualitativevely to identify the stages of the medication management and use process, types of medication errors and contributing factors. High-alert medications accounted for more than half (n=317/528, 60,0 %) of the entire material of this study. Medication errors (n=378) were identified most during the administration and preparation phase of the medication. In the administration phase, 56,8 % (n=117/206) of errors were identified with PN and the most common error was disturbances in the infusion tubing, wrong infusion rate or wrong dose. With concentrated electrolytes, errors in the administration phase were identified in 50,0 % (n=86/172) of all errors and the most common error was wrong product the patient received, wrong infusion rate and medicine not being administered. In the medication preparation phase, errors were identified in 20,9% (n=43/206) of PN and 30,2% (n=52/172) of concentrated electrolytes. The most common error in the preparation phase was incorrect preparation of medicine with both groups of medicinal substances. Factors related to workload and resources and human factors related to the employee, were most identified as contributing factors (n=753) in both medication groups. Targeting preventive protections, especially in the administration and preparation phases of the medicine is desirable both with PN and concentrated electrolytes. It is also important to plan safeguards comprehensively for the entire mediacation management and use process taking into account the key contributing factors that predispose to medication errors.