Peer-reviewed article
Assessing medication safety culture in Norwegian pediatric wards: a first nationwide survey.
Kadir L, Einen M, Bergman JC, Irgens HU, Sørland GL et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study surveyed Norwegian pediatric hospital staff about medication safety culture and error reporting practices. Researchers found that access to health information technology varied across hospitals, and while staff had positive safety awareness, barriers to error reporting may limit learning opportunities. The study identified needs for better technology adapted to pediatrics and more training on patient safety.
Key points
- 102 nurses, 24 physicians, and 7 pharmacists from 19 of 22 Norwegian pediatric wards responded
- Access to electronic health records, medication administration records, and clinical decision support systems varied across hospitals
- Staff generally agreed that established reporting culture promotes learning
- Majority expressed need for greater involvement in reviewing medication errors and more training on patient safety
- Ongoing implementation of health information technology affected medication management processes
Limitations
This survey measures staff perceptions and awareness of medication safety culture rather than actual patient outcomes or medication error rates. The study cannot determine whether variations in technology access or reporting culture actually affect child health outcomes or medication error incidence.
Abstract
Background and aims Health information technologies are widely used in hospitals to reduce the risk of medication errors. However, evidence on their impact on medication management and patient safety in pediatric settings remains limited. The aim of this study was to assess safety culture in medication management and medication error reporting in pediatric wards and to identify areas for improvement. Method A survey was developed and presented on the annual meeting of Medicines for Children Network, Norway, attended by 80 physicians, pharmacists, and nurses. Following adjustments, the questionnaire was piloted with two physicians, three pharmacists, and three nurses. The survey was then distributed by e-mail to all pediatric wards in Norway. We used the SEIPS (Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety) model to guide the analysis. Results In total 102 nurses, 24 physicians and seven pharmacists responded, representing 19 out of the 22 (86%) pediatric wards. Access to health information technology adapted to pediatrics, including electronic health records, electronic medication administration records, and clinical decision support systems, varied across hospitals and across stages of the medication management process. Respondents generally agreed that a well-established reporting culture promotes learning. A majority also expressed a need for greater involvement in the review of reported medication errors, and more extensive training regarding patient safety and reporting culture. Conclusion Hospital staff demonstrated generally positive awareness of pediatric patient safety. Medication management seemed to be affected by the ongoing implementation of new health information technology, suggesting opportunities for better health information technologies adapted to pediatric wards. Persistent barriers to medication error reporting may limit opportunities for learning and improvement.