C7 Medication literacy, mothers and children

Tuesday 12 September 2017
12:30-14:00
COEX Convention & Exhibition Center : Grand Ballroom 105 1 hours

Organised by the FIP Pictogram Project

Chairs: Régis Vaillancourt (Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Canada)

Introduction

Pharmacist and patient communication is crucial for a successful relationship and effective exchange of information, especially when serving patients with low education, low medication literacy or other communication barriers. Health literacy plays a crucial role in the comprehension of health and drug-related instructions. Prescription drug labels that are not clearly stated can be misunderstood due to limited literacy or impaired reading ability. The misinterpretation of medication instructions can result in under-treatment and possible harm. Ultimately, low health literacy may lead to adverse health outcomes. These consequences of low health literacy are particularly severe for maternal, new born and child health with findings showing a strong association between mother’s literacy level and infant mortality. The purpose of this session is to provide an overview of the concept of medication literacy and present medication literacy tools that pharmacists around the world can use to improve maternal, new born and child health. The session will also focus on helping participants enrich their understanding of the factors influencing medication literacy levels in the population and how to identify patients at higher risk.

Learning objectives

At the conclusion of this application-based session, participants will be able to:

  1. Analyse medication literacy and understand the importance of the concept for pharmacist working in maternal, new born and child care.
  2. Evaluate factors influencing medication literacy and how to identify patients most at risk for medication literacy.
  3. Adjust their interventions to the needs of their patients with low medication literacy by using medication literacy tools.
  4. Advocate for or educate other health care providers about the use of enhanced communication strategies that support medication literacy and maternal, new born and child health.

Programme

12:30 – 13:00
1. Medication literacy and maternal, child and new born health: What can pharmacists do?
Régis Vaillancourt (Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Canada)

13:00 – 13:30
2. Medicines use in children, and the pharmacy curriculum
Rebekah Moles (The University of Sydney, Australia)

13:30 – 14:00
3. Rethinking discharge pharmacy services at a paediatric hospital: Identifying patients at risk for low medication literacy and using the right tools to deliver medication instructions
Annie Pouliot (Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Canada)