An evaluation of the prescribing patterns for under-five patients at a Tertiary Paediatric Hospital in Sierra Leone

PURPOSE: There is limited information on pediatric prescribing in Sierra Leone. This study evaluated prescribing patterns for under-five patients at Ola During Children's Hospital (ODCH) and assessed the extent of rational prescribing. METHODS: A descriptive, cross-sectional, retrospective study of 294 prescriptions, selected by systematic random sampling was conducted at the outpatient department of ODCH. The World Health Organisation prescribing indicators were analyzed using the SPSS package 16.0. The index of rational drug prescribing (IRDP) was calculated to assess rational prescribing. RESULTS: The average number of medicines per prescription was 3.77. The percentage of medicines prescribed by generic names was 71.0%, while 74.8% and 21.1% of prescriptions had an antibiotic and injection, respectively. The percentage of medicines prescribed from the national essential medicines list was 70.6%. The most commonly prescribed pharmacological groups of medicines were vitamins (85.37%) and antibiotics (82.99%). The IRDP was 2.71, instead of the ideal value of 5. CONCLUSION: Pediatric prescribing patterns at the outpatient department of ODCH cannot be said to be entirely rational, especially with regards to antibiotic and injection prescribing.