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Showing results for tags 'Paediatrics'.
Found 158 results
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Content ArticlePoster presentation from Dr Felicity Brokke and Ken Spearpoint at the recent GOSH Patient Safety and Human Factors Conference.
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News Article
Children getting ‘conveyor belt’ care due to waiting list pressure
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The pressure to tackle long waiting lists in children’s community services is impacting care quality, clinical leaders have warned. It comes after community health services waiting list figures were published for the first time by NHS England last week. They revealed more than 200,000 children were waiting, of whom 12,000 had been waiting more than a year, and 65,000 more than 18 weeks. While adult community services lists have been coming down fairly steadily since the autumn, children’s services are failing to make progress. The children’s services with the longest lists are community paediatrics (which mostly deals with neurological development issues such as autism and ADHD), speech and language therapy, and children’s occupational therapy. Specialists in those areas told HSJ it was the result of staffing gaps, rising and more complex demand, Covid backlog, and years of underfunding. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 20 March 2023 -
News Article
USA: Top 10 patient safety concerns for 2023
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The US Emergency Care Research Institute (ECRI) has said the paediatric mental health crisis is the most pressing patient safety concern in 2023. ECRI, which conducts independent medical device evaluations, annually compiles scientific literature and patient safety events, concerns reported to or investigated by the organization, and other data sources to create its top 10 list. Here are the 10 patient safety concerns for 2023, according to the report: 1. The pediatric mental health crisis 2. Physical and verbal violence against healthcare staff 3. Clinician needs in times of uncertainty surrounding maternal-fetal medicine 4. Impact on clinicians expected to work outside their scope of practice and competencies 5. Delayed identification and treatment of sepsis 6. Consequences of poor care coordination for patients with complex medical conditions 7. Risks of not looking beyond the "five rights" to achieve medication safety 8. Medication errors resulting from inaccurate patient medication lists 9. Accidental administration of neuromuscular blocking agents 10. Preventable harm due to omitted care or treatment For the number one spot, ECRI said the COVID-19 pandemic raised the situation, which includes high rates of depression and anxiety among children, to crisis levels. ECRI President and CEO Marcus Schabacker, MD, PhD, said social media, gun violence and other socioeconomic factors were fueling the issue, but COVID-19 pushed it into a crisis. "We're approaching a national public health emergency," Dr. Schabacker said in a statement. Read full story Source: Becker's Hospital Review, 13 March 2023 -
Content ArticleECRI’s Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns 2023 list identifies potential sources of danger for patients and staff. ECRI believe these risks require the greatest focus for the coming year and offer actionable recommendations for reducing these risks. ECRI conducts independent medical device evaluations, annually compiles scientific literature and patient safety events, concerns reported to or investigated by the organization, and other data sources to create its top 10 list.
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Content ArticleThis report by the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit (NPDA) looks at diabetes care for children in England and Wales in 2021-22. The effectiveness of diabetes care is measured against NICE guidelines and includes treatment targets, health checks, patient education, psychological wellbeing, and assessment of diabetes-related complications including acute hospital admissions, all of which are vital for monitoring and improving the long-term health and wellbeing of children and young people with diabetes. In 2021/22, 100% of paediatric diabetes teams participated in the NPDA.
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News ArticleA staffing crisis in children’s dentistry has prompted the urgent removal of junior doctors from Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (GOSH. GOSH has struggled to recruit consultants for its paediatric dentistry services for at least two years, which has led to trainee doctors going unsupervised, according to a new report by regulator Health Education England. A report seen by The Independent said the service was running with just one part-time consultant but needed at least two. The news comes amid a national “crisis” in dentistry, with the latest data from the government showing that half of all children’s tooth extractions in 2021-22 were due to “preventable tooth decay”. GOSH told The Independent it was struggling with a “limited pool” of paediatric dentists and, as a result of shortages, many patients were waiting longer than the 18-week standard. Read full story Source: The Independent, 8 February 2023
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Content ArticlePatient engagement is a key component of quality improvement in health. Patient activation is defined as the patient's willingness to manage their health based on understanding their role in the care process and having the knowledge and skills to do so. For children parents have this role. The Parent Patient Activation Measure (Parent-PAM) is adapted from Patient Activation Measure(PAM), a 13-point questionnaire designed to measure healthcare activation. PAM scores are stratified into "levels of activation": Level 1-does not believe the caregiver role is important (score ≤47.0) through to Level 4-takes action, may have difficulty maintaining behaviours (score ≥71). This study, published in the European Respiratory Journal, aimed to evaluate caregiver activation using Parent-PAM in a paediatric difficult asthma(DA)clinic.
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Content ArticleThe purpose of this study, published in Archives of Disease in Childhood, was to determine the incidence and nature of prescribing and medication administration errors in paediatric inpatients. Authors conclude that prescribing and medication administration errors are not uncommon in paediatrics, partly as a result of the extra challenges in prescribing and administering medication to this patient group. The causes and extent of these errors need to be explored locally and improvement strategies pursued.
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Content ArticleThe purpose of this study, published in Intensive Care Medicine, was to establish the baseline prescribing error rate in a tertiary paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and to determine the impact of a zero tolerance prescribing (ZTP) policy incorporating a dedicated prescribing area and daily feedback of prescribing errors.
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Content ArticleIatrogenic injuries, including medication errors, are an important problem in all hospitalized populations. However, few epidemiological data are available regarding medication errors in the paediatric inpatient setting. The objectives of this paper, published in JAMA, were to assess the rates of medication errors, adverse drug events (ADEs), and potential ADEs; to compare paediatric rates with previously reported adult rates; to analyse the major types of errors; and to evaluate the potential impact of prevention strategies.
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Content ArticleMedication errors are an important cause of preventable morbidity, especially in children in emergency department (ED) settings. Internal use of voluntary incident reporting (IR) is common within hospitals, with little external reporting or sharing of this information across institutions. In this paper published Emergency Medicine Journal, authors describe the analysis of paediatric medication events (ME) reported in 18 EDs in a paediatric research network in 2007–2008.
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Content ArticleThis national NHS primary care clinical pathway for constipation in children guidance supports clinicians in the prevention and management of constipation in children and young people by providing a clear and standardised approach, based on guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the British National Formulary for Children (BNFc) and clinical expert groups. The pathway promotes available resources for clinicians, families and other care providers and ensures they are easily accessible, as well as raises the profile of constipation in children and young people with a learning disability as a factor in adult mortality rates.
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Content ArticleThere is little longitudinal information about the type and frequency of harm resulting from medication errors among outpatient children with cancer. This study aimed to characterise rates and types of medication errors and harm to outpatient children with leukaemia and lymphoma over 7 months of treatment.
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Content ArticleThe Scottish Patient Safety Programme (SPSP) is a national quality improvement programme that aims to improve the safety and reliability of care and reduce harm. Since the launch of SPSP in 2008, the programme has expanded to support improvements in safety across a wide range of care settings including Acute and Primary Care, Mental Health, Maternity, Neonatal, Paediatric services and medicines safety. Underpinned by the robust application of quality improvement methodology SPSP has brought about significant change in outcomes for people across Scotland.
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Content ArticleIn this video, Leah Coufal’s mother, Lenore Alexander, recounts the tragic story of her 12-year-old daughter’s preventable death in hospital in December 2002. Leah died from opioid-induced respiratory depression due to a lack of continuous postoperative monitoring which could have saved her life. Lenore now campaigns for the legal requirement to monitor patients on opioids after surgery.
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EventuntilEvent overview: Attend the first Paediatric Patient Safety & Human Factors Conference hosted by Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children. Taking a patient-centred approach, this event will bring together experts to consider the challenges of patient safety in paediatrics. It will explore human behaviours that influence safety in healthcare as well as ways to improve safety for children and young people. It will also discuss ways to support patients, families and colleagues when things go wrong and how we can learn from these events. This event is open to all paediatric healthcare professionals including medical, nursing, AHP, administrative and support staff. Event objectives: To share knowledge and develop a better understanding of the impact of compassion on patient safety in paediatrics. To discuss the challenges in patient safety, ways to support families and colleagues when challenges persist and how to learn from events to reduce the likelihood of harm. To explore innovations in paediatric patient safety and share this knowledge. To foster and expand paediatric patient safety networks, to collectively improve care for children and their families. Register
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Content ArticleThis video from the Irish Health Services Executive (HSE) tells the story of Barry, a paediatric nurse who made a medication error when treating a critically ill baby. Barry describes how the incident and the management response to it affected his mental health and confidence over a long period of time. He also describes how he had to fight to ensure the family were told the full story of what had happened, and the positive relationship he developed with the baby's mother as a result. The baby received the treatment they needed and recovered well.
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Content ArticleInstitute of Health Visiting executive director Alison Morton warns national policy has developed a “baby blind spot” amid the NHS crisis, with many young children missing out on government’s promise of the “best start in life”, and calls for a shift towards prevention and early intervention.
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Content ArticleGlobally, the under-five mortality rate (U5MR) fell to 38 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2021, while under-five deaths dropped to 5.0 million. Although this demonstrates a decrease, this immense, intolerable and mostly preventable loss of life was carried unequally around the world , and children continue to face widely differing chances of survival based on where they are born. In contrast to the global rate, children born in sub-Saharan Africa are subject to the highest risk of childhood death in the world with a 2021 U5MR of 74 deaths per 1,000 live births – 15 times higher than the risk for children in Europe and Northern America and 19 times higher than in the region of Australia and New Zealand This report outlines and analyses figures from The United Nations Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) to examine levels and trends in child mortality around the world during 2022.
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News Article
Five million children worldwide die before fifth birthday, says UN
Patient-Safety-Learning posted a news article in News
Five million children worldwide died before their fifth birthday in 2021, with almost half (47%) dying during their first month, according to new UN figures. Most of the deaths could have been prevented with better healthcare, say campaigners, adding that deaths among newborn babies haven’t reduced significantly since 2017. Children born in sub-Saharan Africa are 15 times more likely to die in childhood than children in Europe and North America. UN figures also show that 1.9 million babies were stillborn during 2021, more than three-quarters (77%) in sub-Saharan Africa and in south Asia. The risk of a woman having a stillborn baby in sub-Saharan Africa is seven times greater than for women in Europe and North America. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 10 January 2022 -
Content ArticleThis case study published by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP) highlights the Epilepsy12 Audit’s approach to working with children and young people to improve paediatric epilepsy care. Epilepsy12 Youth Advocates are epilepsy experienced or interested children, young people, families and an epilepsy specialist nurse. They volunteer together to shape Epilepsy12 and to lead improvement activities with families and epilepsy services. The audit won the Richard Driscoll Memorial Award (RDMA) 2022. The RDMA asks HQIP commissioned programmes to describe how patients and carers influence the production of the patient-focused outputs of the programme.
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News Article
Scarlet fever cases rise tenfold as parents struggle to find Strep A antibiotics
Patient-Safety-Learning posted a news article in News
Scarlet fever cases have surged by tenfold in a year, official data shows, as pharmacists grapple with a shortage of antibiotics during a Strep A outbreak. Strep A bacteria usually only causes mild illness, including scarlet fever and strep throat, which is treated with antibiotics. But in rare cases, it can progress into a potentially life-threatening disease if it gets into the bloodstream. Infections are higher than normal for this time of year, and at least nine children have died after contracting the bacteria in recent weeks. Pharmacists say they are struggling to get their hands on antibiotics to treat Strep A infections – despite the government insisting there is no shortage. “We are worried because we are having to turn patients away,” said Dr Leyla Hannbeck, the head of the Association of Multiple Pharmacies (AIMP). Read more Source: The Independent, 8 December 2022 -
News Article
Germany faces ‘catastrophic’ paediatric bed shortage as RSV cases soar
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Intensive care doctors in Germany have warned that hospital paediatric units in the country are stretched to breaking point in part due to rising cases of respiratory infections among infants. The intensive care association DIVI said the seasonal rise in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) cases and a shortage of nurses was causing a “catastrophic situation” in hospitals. RSV is a common, highly contagious virus that infects nearly all babies and toddlers by the age of two, some of whom can fall seriously ill. Experts say the easing of coronavirus pandemic restrictions means RSV is affecting a larger number of babies and children, whose immune systems aren’t primed to fend it off. Cases of RSV and other respiratory illnesses have also increased in the UK and in the US, which is also suffering from a shortages of antivirals and antibiotics. In Germany, hospital doctors are having to make difficult decisions about which children to assign to limited intensive care beds. In some cases, children with RSV or other serious conditions are getting transferred to hospitals elsewhere in Germany with spare capacity. “If the forecasts are right, then things will get significantly more acute in the coming days and week,” Sebastian Brenner, head of the paediatric intensive care unit at University Hospital Dresden, told German news channel n-tv. “We see this in France, for example, and in Switzerland. If that happens, then there will be bottlenecks when it comes to treatment.” Others warned that, in certain cases, doctors already were unable to provide the urgent care some children need. “The situation is so precarious that we genuinely have to say children are dying because we can’t treat them any more,” Dr. Michael Sasse, head of paediatric intensive care at Hanover’s MHH University hospital, said. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 1 December 2022 -
News Article
Logan Mwangi murder: Injuries seen as accident by doctor
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Hospital doctors failed to share with child protection services a list of "significant" injuries a five-year-old boy suffered 11 months before he was murdered, a case review has found. Logan Mwangi had a broken arm and multiple bruises across his body when he was taken to A&E in August 2020. But a paediatric consultant said these injuries were accidental and did not make a child protection referral. Logan, from Bridgend, was murdered by his mother, stepfather and a teenager. A Child Practice Review (CPR) has looked at how different agencies were involved with Logan's family in the 17 months before his death. Cwm Taf Morgannwg health board said it welcomed the commissioning of an independent review into how it identifies and investigates non-accidental injuries. The report said that if the injuries had been shared with social services, appropriate action could have been taken to safeguard Logan. Jan Pickles, the independent chair of the review panel, said it was a "a significant missed opportunity". She added: "Had further information from health been shared it most likely, though we cannot say for sure because of hindsight bias, would have triggered a child protection assessment in line with the joint agreed guidelines, as the nature of those injuries clearly met the threshold." Read full story Source: BBC News, 24 November 2022 -
Content ArticleThis study in BMJ Open Quality examines aspects of workplace culture, employee motivation and leadership behaviours that support continuous learning and improvement, in an effort to measure the transition to high reliability. It reports on the development of two scales (trust in team members and trust in leadership) in a US children’s hospital which was seeking to assess progressive movement towards a ‘culture of safety'. The scales were designed to measure two cultural conditions fostered by the five high reliability principles and a composite measure on local learning activities.
