Development and Prospective Federal State-Wide Evaluation of a Device for Height-Based Dose Recommendations in Prehospital Pediatric Emergencies: A Simple Tool to Prevent Most Severe Drug Errors.

Jost KaufmannBernhard RothThomas EngelhardtAlex LechleuthnerMichael LaschatChristoph HadamitzkyFrank WapplerMartin Hellmich

Published in: Prehospital emergency care : official journal of the National Association of EMS Physicians and the National Association of State EMS Directors (2016)

The use of the PaedER resulted in a 90% reduction of medication errors (95% CI: 57% to 98%; p < 0.001) and prevented all potentially life-threatening errors associated with epinephrine administration. There is an urgent need to increase the safety of emergency drug dosing in children during emergencies. A simple height-based system can support health care providers and helps to avoid life-threatening medication errors.

Keyphrases

adverse drug
healthcare
emergency department
patient safety
body mass index
electronic health record
drug induced
public health
young adults
cardiac arrest
clinical practice
health information