Objective: This study investigates the Wisconsin adolescent self-poisoning problem, using state discharge data on medication-related self-inflicted injuries, focusing on medications used and risk factors.
Methods: Wisconsin inpatient discharge files for 3 years (January 1, 2000-December 31, 2002) were evaluated. Medication-related injuries were analyzed for intentionality, medications used, discharge status, and risk factors such as mental illness, eating disorders, and alcohol abuse or dependence.
Results: There were nearly 3000 medication-related injury hospitalizations--1150 of them self-poisoning hospitalizations--among Wisconsin 12-17 year olds during 2000-2002. Females 12-17 years had twice as many medication-related injuries as males. Sixty percent of medication-related injuries occurred in patients with a mental disorder diagnosis. Non-narcotic analgesics were most commonly used and had one of the highest rates of intentionality (65%). A large proportion of intentional/suicidal medication-related injuries were discharged to another facility (35%), compared to 14% among all medical injuries. Males with medication-related injuries were twice (95% CI: 1.60, 2.75) as likely and females 1.4 (95% CI: 1.2, 1.6) times as likely to have intentional/suicidal injuries if they also abused or depended on alcohol.
Conclusions: Given that a nonfatal suicide attempt is the strongest predictor of eventual suicide, the hundreds of self-poisoning discharges per year in Wisconsin 12-17 year olds is a serious public health concern. Both the medical community and public health community should heed the warnings of these nonfatal suicide attempts and implement educational programs addressing this issue.
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Clin Pediatr (Phila)
December 2024
Servei de Pediatria, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.
Objectives: Medication errors are one of the main causes of avoidable injuries in health care. With the aim of reducing them, a set of sheets with precalculated doses (by weight intervals) and preparation guidelines of the most common drugs in emergencies (Farmacards) was implemented in a Pediatric Emergency Department, replacing the previous manual calculation system. The aim of the study is to assess the staff's perception of safety and usefulness of the new dosing system.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Qual Health Care
December 2024
Registry of Senior Australians (ROSA), South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, North Terrace, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia.
Bull Tokyo Dent Coll
December 2024
A condylar head fracture in the mandible is often misdiagnosed as a contusion of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ). Moreover, they are often overlooked by general practitioners as the fragments are small, making them difficult to identify. This report describes 2 cases of old mandibular condylar head fractures: one involving an 84-year-old woman referred to our dental office with suspected medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw; and another involving a 23-year-old man who visited with the chief complaint of slight pain in the left TMJ.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Nurs Adm
November 2024
Author Affiliation: Program Director (Dr Higden), Vice President for Patient Safety (Dr Folcarelli), and Senior Clinical Analytics Specialist (Dr Schaffer), Patient Safety, CRICO, Boston, Massachusetts.
Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze medication-related nursing medical malpractice cases to gain insights regarding how malpractice risk can be reduced.
Background: The criminal prosecution and verdict of nurse RaDonda Vaught focused attention on the potential medicolegal risk for nurses related to medications.
Methods: Medication-related medical malpractice cases involving nurses were obtained from a national database.
Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol
January 2025
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Facial Plastic Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany.
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