Parents’ understanding of medication at discharge and potential harm in children with medical complexity (23 November 2023)

Summary

Poor health literacy can inhibit patient or caregiver understanding of care instructions and threaten patient safety. This cross-sectional study from Selzer et al. of medically complex children treated at one academic hospital in Austria reveals that despite high levels of satisfaction with care, many caregivers do not understand medication management instructions at discharge. Misunderstandings were more likely to occur with higher numbers and/or new prescriptions, poor medication-related communication, and language or literacy barriers.