PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Feven Ataklte
AU  - John Wong
AU  - Bandipalyam Prathibha
TI  - Use of a pre-printed oxygen prescription section on a drug chart to improve practice of oxygen prescription and monitoring
DP  - 2011 Sep 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - p4628
VI  - 38
IP  - Suppl 55
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/38/Suppl_55/p4628.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/38/Suppl_55/p4628.full
SO  - Eur Respir J2011 Sep 01; 38
AB  - Background: Oxygen can cause serious harm if not administered and monitored properly. By June 2009, the National Patient Safety Agency in the United Kingdom has received 281 reports of serious incidents (including deaths) related to poor oxygen administration (NPSA website). An oxygen audit was conducted at the William Harvey Hospital (WHH), in the United Kingdom, in 2009, after which a new drug chart with pre-printed oxygen prescription section was introduced in order to help improve oxygen prescription practice in the hospital.Objective: Determine whether the introduction of pre-printed oxygen prescription section on the drug chart at WHH improved oxygen prescription and monitoring practices.Method: Oxygen prescribing and monitoring practice were recorded from eight wards at WHH in December 2010. Data were collected using the British Thoracic Society “Oxygen Audit Collecting Sheet”. Results were compared with the 2009 WHH audit, done prior to the introduction of the new drug chart.Result: Forty-four out of 192 patients included in survey (23%) were on oxygen therapy. Fourteen of the 44 (32%) who were on oxygen had a valid prescription with recorded target saturation range (WHH 2009 audit: 10%, n=39).Three of the 19 patients (16%) who had some form of written instruction for oxygen had oxygen signed for on drug rounds (WHH 2009 audit: 27%).Conclusion: Our results showed that the new drug chart, with the pre-printed oxygen prescription and monitoring section, did improve the rate of oxygen prescription, but not monitoring practices. Future areas of work include raising awareness of health professionals that oxygen is a drug and requires prescription and monitoring.