Keeping Kids Safe in the ED – Think Amber
The Children's Hospital at Westmead
Abstract
A key opportunity to improve patient safety in the Emergency Department (ED) at The Children's Hospital at Westmead (CHW) was identified in 2006. This initiative was the introduction of oral syringes that are incompatible with intravenous (IV) lines, thus preventing the inadvertent administration of harmful oral medications or oral rehydration fluids through an IV line.
These syringes were introduced into the ED during 2006, accompanied by an education program. To ascertain a baseline for knowledge and use of syringes, a staff survey was conducted in June 2006 and May 2007. Numbers of oral syringes were also counted.
The use of oral syringes increased from zero in April 2006 to 60 per day in April 2007. Awareness increased from 81% to 100%. Respondents reporting 'always' using oral syringes increased from 12% to 57% for oral medications and from 8% to 75% for oral rehydration solutions. There were no related adverse events reported during this time.
This project was entered in the 2007 NSW Health Awards, Better Experiences for People using Health Services category.
The full entry document can be downloaded in the formats listed below:
Contact
Emergency Consultant
Emergency Department, The Children's Hospital at Westmead
Phone: 02 9845 2467
