Suboptimal COVID-19 vaccine uptake among hospitalised patients: an opportunity to improve vulnerable, hard-to-reach population vaccine rates.

Background: COVID-19 vaccination represents a key preventative part of the Australian public health approach to the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic. Hospital inpatients are frequently high risk for severe COVID-19 and death. Anecdotes of high-risk inpatients being unvaccinated and a lack of electronic medical record (EMR) visibility of COVID-19 vaccination status prompted the present study as these patients could represent a risk to themselves, staff, other patients and service provision.

Clinical indications treated with unregistered antimicrobials: regulatory challenges of antimicrobial resistance and access to effective treatment for patients.

Objective Increasing antimicrobial resistance and a concurrent paucity of new antimicrobials marketed increases the risk that patients will develop infections resistant to currently available drugs. This study aimed to determine the range of clinical indications for which unregistered antimicrobials are prescribed at two tertiary hospitals in South Australia to identify any trends over a 2-year period. The effects of recent regulatory changes to the Special Access Scheme (SAS) were assessed.

Making sure the residents get their tablets: medication administration in care homes for older people.

Aim: This paper reports an exploratory study of issues concerning the nursing practice of altering medication dose forms prior to administration of medicines to residents in homes for older people.

Background: Medication use and administration is a major issue in residential homes for older people. Research suggests that the alteration of medication dose forms in these homes is a widespread practice.