Abstract
BackgroundThe aim of this study was to determine the training provisions in practical safe prescribing for foundation doctors in NHS hospitals located in the South Thames region.MethodsA web-based questionnaire was distributed by e-mail to all 1762 foundation doctors in the South Thames Foundation School (STFS) region. In addition, a separate questionnaire was distributed to prescribing training Leads at 15 NHS Hospital Trusts. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis was performed on qualitative data.ResultsTrainers: 10 Prescribing Leads (67 %) responded. Of the 9 NHS Trusts that offered safe prescribing training in their induction programme, 5 included a practical prescribing session. By the end of the foundation year, 6 NHS Trusts had provided at least one dedicated practical prescribing session for F1s compared with 2 NHS Trusts for F2s.Trainees: A total of 124 foundation trainees (7.2 %) responded (69 F1s and 55 F2s). 87 % of F1s received dedicated training in safe prescribing at their Trust induction (n = 60) in comparison to 49 % of F2s (n = 27). 80 % of F1s (n = 55) had a practical prescribing session during induction versus 27 % of F2s (n = 15). The difference was significant, X2 (1, N = 124) = 34.23, p <0.0001. Emerging themes from qualitative data included, recognition of medical education as a continuum, importance of working relationships with pharmacists and neglect of F2s.ConclusionsThere appears to be a lack of emphasis on the training of F2 doctors in practical safe prescribing compared with F1 doctors. There should be standardisation of safe prescribing training provisions, particularly in the induction period and for F2 doctors.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12909-016-0748-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
The aim of this study was to determine the training provisions in practical safe prescribing for foundation doctors in NHS hospitals located in the South Thames region
Prescribing lead questionnaire There were a total of 11 respondents representing 10 out of 15 NHS Hospital Trusts (67 %) contacted
Eight out of the 10 NHS Trusts reported that their F1 doctors received induction a week prior to the official start date of their job
Summary
The aim of this study was to determine the training provisions in practical safe prescribing for foundation doctors in NHS hospitals located in the South Thames region. Despite its obvious importance and the frequency at which prescribing is performed, it remains an errorprone process, which can compromise patient safety. Foundation doctors were responsible for the highest error rates, and unsurprisingly performed the majority of prescribing. Doctors in their second year of postgraduate training (F2s) were found to have the highest error rate at 10.3 %, followed by doctors in their first year of postgraduate training (F1s) at 8.4 % and the reasons for this are yet to be explored fully. Prescribing error is not a problem exclusive to the hospital setting, as 4.9 % of prescriptions written in general practice, in the UK, contain an error [4]
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