The use of neonatal inpatient medication charts in a principal referral and specialist hospital for women and newborns

Abstract

A neonatal inpatient medication chart audit was conducted at King Edward Memorial Hospital in 2012 and again in 2014 to investigate and compare the effective use of the newly implemented chart. Two main aspects of the medication charts were investigated: patient characteristics and medication prescriptions. Following the audit in 2012, improvement strategies and educational activities were implemented to improve the completion of the unsatisfactory fields in the medication charts. Posters highlighting audit results were displayed in the ward areas. The pharmacists also participated in the half‐yearly hospital orientation sessions for junior doctors, emphasising safe prescribing and common prescribing errors in the hospital. Computer screen savers on medication safety were set as default screen savers on all computers in the hospital. The percentage of medications with complete dose increased from 98.21% in 2013 to 99.61% in 2014. Other improvements included complete medication name, route, frequency, clear prescriber name, patient's gestational age and correct patient identification stickers. The multi‐faceted interventions were associated with a modest improvement in the use of the neonatal inpatient medication chart.