Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Khartoum, Khartoum, Sudan.
Ann Pharmacother. 2010 Dec;44(12):1986-93. doi: 10.1345/aph.1P423. Epub 2010 Nov 30.
Irrational drug utilization is a major concern in developing countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) has developed first-level informative indicators in assessing drug use practices and encouraging improvement in the quality of patient care.
To assess the current drug use practices in 4 pediatric teaching hospitals in Khartoum State, and to compare the results with studies conducted in Sudan and other developing countries.
A descriptive, quantitative, and cross-sectional study using the WHO drug use indicators methodology was conducted in the outpatient settings of 4 pediatric hospitals. The study sample was selected using systematic random sampling. In each hospital, prescribing was assessed through a collection of 150 prescriptions, determination of consultation time and dispensing time for 150 patients, and by interview of 150 patients for the evaluation of dispensing practices and parents' knowledge.
The mean number of drugs prescribed per prescription was 2.0 (95% CI 1.9 to 2.1); 49.3% (95% CI 46.3 to 52.4) were prescribed by generic name, 81.3% (95% CI 77.9 to 84.3) of prescriptions involved an antibiotic, and 3.5% (95% CI 2.2 to 5.4) of prescriptions were in injection form. The mean consultation and dispensing times were 4.7 minutes (95% CI 4.4 to 5.1) and 28.2 seconds (95% CI 26.5 to 29.9), respectively. The percentage of drugs actually dispensed was 80.1% (95% CI 77.9 to 82.2), 55.7% (95% CI 52.0 to 59.4) of drugs were adequately labeled, and 83.5% (95% CI 80.2 to 86.3) of parents knew the correct dosage of all drugs dispensed for their children. The percentage of availability of key drugs was 81.3% (95% CI 77.1 to 84.9). The essential medicines list was not available at the 4 hospitals.
Our findings reveal problem areas in prescribing and dispensing practices in pediatric hospitals. Further in-depth quantitative research to answer the shortcomings of this study and cost-effective multifaceted interventions to improve current drug use practices are highly needed to secure the quality of medical care in pediatric hospitals.
不合理的药物使用是发展中国家的主要关注点。世界卫生组织（WHO）制定了一级信息指标，用于评估药物使用情况，并鼓励改善患者护理质量。
评估喀土穆州 4 所儿科教学医院的当前药物使用情况，并将结果与在苏丹和其他发展中国家进行的研究进行比较。
采用描述性、定量和横断面研究方法，使用世界卫生组织药物使用指标方法，在 4 所儿科医院的门诊环境中进行。使用系统随机抽样选择研究样本。在每家医院，通过收集 150 张处方、评估 150 名患者的就诊时间和配药时间、以及对 150 名患者进行配药实践和家长知识评估的访谈来评估处方情况。
每张处方平均开具的药物数量为 2.0（95%置信区间 1.9 至 2.1）；49.3%（95%置信区间 46.3 至 52.4）以通用名开具处方，81.3%（95%置信区间 77.9 至 84.3）的处方涉及抗生素，3.5%（95%置信区间 2.2 至 5.4）的处方为注射剂型。平均就诊和配药时间分别为 4.7 分钟（95%置信区间 4.4 至 5.1）和 28.2 秒（95%置信区间 26.5 至 29.9）。实际配药率为 80.1%（95%置信区间 77.9 至 82.2），55.7%（95%置信区间 52.0 至 59.4）的药物标签标注充分，83.5%（95%置信区间 80.2 至 86.3）的家长知道为其孩子开具的所有药物的正确剂量。关键药物的供应率为 81.3%（95%置信区间 77.1 至 84.9）。4 家医院均未提供基本药物清单。
我们的研究结果揭示了儿科医院处方和配药实践中的问题领域。需要进一步进行深入的定量研究，以回答本研究的不足之处，并采取具有成本效益的多方面干预措施，以改善当前的药物使用情况，从而确保儿科医院的医疗质量。
