Dataset Information

Discharge Instruction Comprehension and Adherence Errors: Interrelationship Between Plan Complexity and Parent Health Literacy.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To examine associations between parent health literacy, discharge plan complexity, and parent comprehension of and adherence to inpatient discharge instructions.

Study design

This was a prospective cohort study of English/Spanish-speaking parents (n = 165) of children ≤12 years discharged on ≥1 daily medication from an urban, public hospital. Outcome variables were parent comprehension (survey) of and adherence (survey, in-person dosing assessment, chart review) to discharge instructions. Predictor variables included low parent health literacy (Newest Vital Sign score 0-3) and plan complexity. Generalized estimating equations were used to account for the assessment of multiple types of comprehension and adherence errors for each subject, adjusting for ethnicity, language, child age, length of stay, and chronic disease status. Similar analyses were performed to assess for mediation and moderation.

Results

Error rates were highest for comprehension of medication side effects (50%), adherence to medication dose (34%), and return precaution (78%) instructions. Comprehension errors were associated with adherence errors (aOR, 8.7; 95% CI, 5.9-12.9). Discharge plan complexity was associated with comprehension (aOR, 7.0; 95% CI, 5.4-9.1) and adherence (aOR, 5.5; 95% CI, 4.0-7.6) errors. Low health literacy was indirectly associated with adherence errors through comprehension errors. The association between plan complexity and comprehension errors was greater in parents with low (aOR, 8.3; 95% CI, 6.2-11.2) compared with adequate (aOR, 3.8; 95% CI, 2.2-6.5) health literacy (interaction term P = .004).

Conclusions

Parent health literacy and discharge plan complexity play key roles in comprehension and adherence errors. Future work will focus on the development of health literacy-informed interventions to promote discharge plan comprehension.

SUBMITTER: Glick AF

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10866623 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Discharge Instruction Comprehension and Adherence Errors: Interrelationship Between Plan Complexity and Parent Health Literacy.

Glick Alexander F AF Farkas Jonathan S JS Mendelsohn Alan L AL Fierman Arthur H AH Tomopoulos Suzy S Rosenberg Rebecca E RE Dreyer Benard P BP Melgar Jennifer J Varriano John J Yin H Shonna HS

The Journal of pediatrics 20190626

<h4>Objective</h4>To examine associations between parent health literacy, discharge plan complexity, and parent comprehension of and adherence to inpatient discharge instructions.<h4>Study design</h4>This was a prospective cohort study of English/Spanish-speaking parents (n = 165) of children ≤12 years discharged on ≥1 daily medication from an urban, public hospital. Outcome variables were parent comprehension (survey) of and adherence (survey, in-person dosing assessment, chart review) to disch ...[more]

PMID: 31253406

Similar Datasets

Project description:ObjectiveInpatient discharge education is often suboptimal. Measures of parents' perceived comprehension of discharge instructions are included in national metrics given linkage to morbidity; few studies compare parents' perceived and actual comprehension. We 1) compared parent perceived and actual comprehension of discharge instructions and 2) assessed associations between plan complexity and parent health literacy with overestimation of comprehension (perceive comprehension but lack actual comprehension).MethodsProspective cohort study of English/Spanish-speaking parents (n = 192) of inpatients ≤12 years old and discharged on ≥1 daily medication from an urban public hospital. We used McNemar's tests to compare parent perceived (agree/strongly agree on 5-point Likert scale) and actual comprehension (concordance of parent report with medical record) of instructions (domains: medications, appointments, return precautions, and restrictions). Generalized estimating equations were performed to assess associations between low parent health literacy (Newest Vital Sign score ≤3) and plan complexity with overestimation of comprehension.ResultsMedication side effects were the domain with lowest perceived comprehension (80%), while >95% of parents perceived comprehension for other domains. Actual comprehension varied by domain (41%-87%) and was lower than perceived comprehension. Most (84%) parents overestimated comprehension in ≥1 domain. Plan complexity (adjusted odds ratio 3.6; 95% confidence interval 2.9-4.7) and low health literacy (adjusted odds ratio 1.9; 1.3-2.6) were associated with overestimation of comprehension.ConclusionsParental perceived comprehension of discharge instructions overestimated actual comprehension in most domains. Plan complexity and low health literacy were associated with overestimation of comprehension. Future interventions should incorporate assessment of actual comprehension and standardization of discharge instructions.

Project description:ImportanceInadequate communication between caregivers and clinicians at hospital discharge contributes to medication dosing errors in children. Health literacy-informed communication strategies during medication counseling can reduce dosing errors but have not been tested in the pediatric hospital setting.ObjectiveTo test a health literacy-informed communication intervention to decrease liquid medication dosing errors compared with standard counseling in hospitalized children.Design, setting, and participantsThis parallel, randomized clinical trial was performed from June 22, 2021, to August 20, 2022, at a tertiary care, US children's hospital. English- and Spanish-speaking caregivers of hospitalized children 6 years or younger prescribed a new, scheduled liquid medication at discharge were included in the analysis.InterventionsPermuted block (n = 4) randomization (1:1) to a health literacy-informed discharge medication communication bundle (n = 99) compared with standard counseling (n = 99). A study team member delivered the intervention consisting of a written, pictogram-based medication instruction sheet, teach back (caregivers state information taught), and demonstration of dosing with show back (caregivers show how they would draw the liquid medication in the syringe).Main outcome and measuresObserved dosing errors, assessed using a caregiver-submitted photograph of their child's medication-filled syringe and expressed as the percentage difference from the prescribed dose. Secondary outcomes included caregiver-reported medication knowledge. Outcome measurements were blinded to participant group assignment.ResultsAmong 198 caregivers randomized (mean [SD] age, 31.4 [6.5] years; 186 women [93.9%]; 36 [18.2%] Hispanic or Latino and 158 [79.8%] White), the primary outcome was available for 151 (76.3%). The observed mean (SD) percentage dosing error was 1.0% (2.2 percentage points) among the intervention group and 3.3% (5.1 percentage points) among the standard counseling group (absolute difference, 2.3 [95% CI, 1.0-3.6] percentage points; P < .001). Twenty-four of 79 caregivers in the intervention group (30.4%) measured an incorrect dose compared with 39 of 72 (54.2%) in the standard counseling group (P = .003). The intervention enhanced caregiver-reported medication knowledge compared with the standard counseling group for medication dose (71 of 76 [93.4%] vs 55 of 69 [79.7%]; P = .03), duration of administration (65 of 76 [85.5%] vs 49 of 69 [71.0%]; P = .04), and correct reporting of 2 or more medication adverse effects (60 of 76 [78.9%] vs 13 of 69 [18.8%]; P < .001). There were no differences in knowledge of medication name, indication, frequency, or storage.Conclusions and relevanceA health literacy-informed discharge medication communication bundle reduced home liquid medication administration errors and enhanced caregiver medication knowledge compared with standard counseling. Routine use of these standardized strategies can promote patient safety following hospital discharge.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05143047.

Dataset Information

Discharge Instruction Comprehension and Adherence Errors: Interrelationship Between Plan Complexity and Parent Health Literacy.

Objective

Study design

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Discharge Instruction Comprehension and Adherence Errors: Interrelationship Between Plan Complexity and Parent Health Literacy.

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