“Safe, Effective, and Cost-Saving: Implementing a Switch in Pediatric Treatment in Netherlands Hospitals”

2023-05-23 11:32:18

It starts with the convincing result that switching is safe and effective. And that it saves costs, both direct healthcare costs and lower costs due to absenteeism by parents and childcare for other children. The estimated annual savings are approximately €5 million. We want to get the switch into a revised guideline, but that’s not enough. About twenty hospitals – including most of the centers from the RAIN study – are already working on implementation, but the Netherlands has a total of about eighty children’s wards. Implementation is tailor-made, so we first want to map out the hindering and facilitating factors. A PhD student will soon start our implementation study in ten hospitals, in which we will do that, among other things. Of course, the satisfaction of parents is positive. Obstructing are certain beliefs and fixed practices. For example, many pediatricians still mainly look at inflammation values ​​before deciding whether or not to switch. While those values ​​can also be high in healthy newborns. Switching – or even stopping – can be done sooner and more often than doctors sometimes think.’