Adherence of Families to a Group A Streptococcal Pharyngitis Protocol Used in a Pediatric Emergency Department

Abstract

In an effort to limit inappropriate antibiotic use for children with pharyngitis, our pediatric emergency department (PED) has implemented a strep throat protocol using preprinted prescriptions given to families pending pharyngeal swab results. We sought to determine the rate of adherence of families managed with this protocol and to identify whether clinical features are associated with adherence. We conducted a prospective cohort study of children aged 2 to 17 years presented to the PED with suspected group A streptococcal (GAS) pharyngitis. Prescription-filling activity was tracked using a novel carbon-copy prescription and compared with throat swab result. Health records were reviewed for demographic and clinical information. Adherence was defined as prescriptions being filled after notification of a positive swab result and prescriptions not being filled when throat swab result was negative. Three hundred nine children were screened for GAS pharyngitis. One hundred swabs (32.4%) were positive for GAS pharyngitis, of which 15 prescriptions were filled before swab results. No record of prescription filling was found for 37 of the children with positive swab results. Only 9 families (4.3%) filled the prescription when the swab result was negative. Overall, 247 families (80.2%) were adherent to the protocol. Families of children aged 2 to 5 years were more likely to be adherent than those aged 13 to 17 years (odds ratio, 3.5; 95% confidence interval, 1.15-10.66). Most families are adherent to our GAS pharyngitis protocol. Very few families filled prescriptions when the swab result was negative. Age was the only factor influencing adherence. Our current GAS pharyngitis protocol is an effective management strategy for children presenting with pharyngitis to the PED.