Help make medicines safer for kids in hospital

Every day, children and young people are given medicines in hospitals across Australia. Most of the time, it goes smoothly. Sometimes, mistakes happen.

Keeping Kids Safe in Hospital is a national trial introducing an evidence-based Safe-Check Program in 10 hospitals across South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia, Queensland and New South Wales. The aim is to reduce medication errors for children in hospital and free up nursing time for high-value care at the bedside.

Child UnLimited is partnering on the project to set up the National Paediatric Consumer Safety Network (NPCSN). The Network will give young people and families an ongoing voice across the life of the project, from how it’s designed and rolled out to how it’s evaluated and shared.

Two committees, two perspectives

The Network has two advisory committees, because young people and parents and carers each bring something different.

• Young People’s Advisory Committee (YPAC)
  For young people aged 14 and over who have spent time in hospital as a patient. You’ll share your own experiences and ideas, help us make posters, videos and information that are easier to understand, help decide whether our plans make sense from a young person’s point of view, and meet other young people from hospitals around Australia. You don’t need to speak for all young people, just tell us about yours. And if talking in a group isn’t your thing, we can talk about other ways to take part.

• Parent and Caregiver Advisory Committee (PCAC)
  For parents and primary carers of a child who has been (or is) a patient at one of the participating hospitals. You’ll share your family’s experiences of medicines being prescribed, given or managed in hospital, help shape resources and communication for families, advise on how to involve families in culturally safe and accessible ways, and help interpret what we learn from parent and patient experience surveys.

We especially welcome Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and families in regional, rural and remote areas.

You don’t need to know anything about medicine or research. Your own experience is what matters.

How to apply

Applying takes just a few minutes. Fill in a short online form, or get in touch and we’ll help you:

• Parents and carers: redcap.link/KKSH_PCAC

• Young people (14+): redcap.link/KKSH_YPAC

Young people under 18 will be asked to have a parent or guardian add their contact details to the form.

Questions?

If you have questions or need help applying, please contact Jen Henwood, Consumer Engagement Manager, Child UnLimited: jen.henwood@unsw.edu.au.

For more information about the Keeping Kids Safe in Hospital program, please contact Professor Johanna Westbrook, Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University: johanna.westbrook@mq.edu.au.