Administration of oral dosage forms of medicines to children in a resource limited setting

BACKGROUND: There are many paediatric specific challenges such as lack of age-appropriate dosage forms, inability of young children to swallow tablets and capsules and poor acceptability, during administration of oral dosage forms of medications to children. Parents adopt various methods which they consider best to circumvent this problem. The objective of this study was to describe the administration practice by parents when giving oral dosage forms of medications to children. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the administration practice of 1800 oral dosage forms of medications administered to children under the age of 12 years using validated indicators. A pre-tested interviewer-administered questionnaire given to parents or caregivers was used to collect the necessary data. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Data from 1800 oral dosage forms was obtained from 663 children. Of the 1287 solid dosage forms, almost one-third were manipulated by parents at the time of giving the medications to children. They were crushed and dissolved in water given to children. In about 17% of instances safety of water was questionable. In 92% of instances, measuring device was found to be inappropriate. CONCLUSION: Administration of oral dosage forms of medications to children is far from ideal and hinders successful use of medications in children.