Short-course antibiotic therapy for pneumonia in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Objective: To determine the adherence and safety outcomes of a 5-day antibiotic course with a "time-out" for treatment of "blood culture-negative" pneumonia in the NICU.

Study Design: Prospective surveillance of all infants diagnosed with pneumonia at 7 NICUs from 8/2020-12/2021. Safety outcomes were defined a priori by re-initiation of antibiotic therapy within 14 days after discontinuation and overall and sepsis-related mortality.

Short-course empiric antibiotic therapy for possible early-onset sepsis in the NICU.

Objective: On 2/2019, the Neonatal Antimicrobial Stewardship Program at Nationwide Children's Hospital recommended reducing empirical antibiotic therapy for early-onset sepsis (EOS) from 48 to 24 hours with a TIME-OUT. We describe our experience with this guideline and assess its safety.

Methods: Retrospective review of newborns evaluated for possible EOS at 6 NICUs from 12/2018-7/2019.

Implementation of an electronic pharmacy scoring tool to prioritize clinical pharmacists' daily workflow at a pediatric institution.

Purpose: To describe the development and implementation of an electronic pharmacy scoring tool (PST) to prioritize patients requiring clinical pharmacy intervention and assist in workload management in a freestanding pediatric hospital using quality improvement methodology.

Summary: The department of pharmacy at Nationwide Children's Hospital developed a pediatric-specific PST within the electronic medical record to aid in patient prioritization and ensuring proficient daily workflow and qualifying workload for clinical pharmacists. The PST identifies patients for monitoring of high-risk medications, complex medication regimens, or abnormal laboratory values related to medication management.