Going public.

BACKGROUND: Little published information is available regarding the proportion of hospitals that offer pediatric services at specified levels, or the actual utilization of such services. OBJECTIVE: To determine if an existing national accreditation process created for educational purposes identifies hospitals with a distinct utilization pattern, in a sample of pediatric inpatient activity from one state. METHODS: Hospitals in New York State were classified as "pediatric" hospitals according to their sponsorship or major participation with an accredited pediatric residence program. Institutions not affiliated with pediatric residencies were considered to be the "other" hospitals. Data on hospital discharges and interhospital transfers were studied for children from 0 to 14 years old, excluding neonatal Diagnosis-Related Groups. Data were obtained from the New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System for 1996, 1997, and 2000. RESULTS: Sixteen percent of hospitals were considered to be "pediatric" facilities (42 of 257) by study criteria. Annual pediatric inpatient activity per "pediatric" hospital significantly exceeded that in "other" institutions, including hospitalizations (2249 +/- 1284 vs 258 +/- 348), number of interhospital transfers received (153 +/- 88 vs 18 +/- 26), and number of hospitals referring interhospital transfers to each receiving hospital (36 +/- 17 vs 5 +/- 7; mean +/- standard deviation; for each comparison). Statewide, "pediatric" hospitals served two thirds of all hospitalized children and 70% of all children's hospital days. "Pediatric" hospitals cared for 26.5 patients per hospital day, compared with only 2.2 per day at "other" institutions. Although statewide hospitalizations of children fell by 14.3% the proportion of all pediatric hospitalizations served by "pediatric" hospitals increased by 3.8% from 1996 to 2000. CONCLUSIONS: Although intended for educational purposes, hospital affiliation with an accredited pediatric residency program identifies a subgroup of facilities with a distinct utilization pattern, which provides care for the majority of pediatric inpatients, and serves as a resource to other hospitals.

Hospitals, Pediatric↗

PubMed2003

Medication errors at Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health.

BACKGROUND: In the past two years, medication errors have been recognized as having been unacceptably high among hospitalized patients. OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence and type of medication errors, severity of events, patient outcomes and categories of drugs involved in the largest pediatric hospital in Thailand over a fifteen-month-period. PATIENTS AND METHOD: Retrospective review of in-patient medication errors documented in standard reporting forms from September 2001 to November 2002. Main outcome measure was the incidence of errors reported. RESULTS: Medication errors occurred in 1 per cent of admissions (322 errors of 32,105 admissions). The most common error type was prescription error (35.40%). The majority of errors were detected and prevented before the drugs were administered (76.71%). There was only one case of permanent brain damage; no deaths occurred in the study period. The most common group of drugs involved in medication errors was antibiotics and the most common route of administration was oral. CONCLUSION: Medication errors are not uncommon. There is a need to change the behaviors of recognizing and acknowledging clinical errors, including drug errors. Careful review of errors highlights the many opportunities to change how drug errors are addressed and to make them less likely.

Hospitals, Pediatric↗