PEDIATRIC DRUG-THERAPY .2. DRUG ADMINISTRATION ERRORS

The incidence of drug administration errors was prospectively evaluated from 1098 drug administrations in 97 paediatric patients. The total incidence of errors was 12.9% in a previous study. An educational programme (lectures and a book on guidelines for drug administration) was offered to nurses in an attempt to decrease this error rate. In this follow-up study, the total incidence of errors declined from 12.9% to 5.1% (P < 0.05). All types of drug administration errors decreased during this follow-up study. These results suggest that such efforts can maximize therapeutic benefit and minimize any potential adverse consequences of drug therapy in paediatric patients.