Pill swallowing in children podcasts

How can we as paediatric health professionals support children and young people to swallow pills? In this series of educational podcasts, produced with Kidzmed, Dr Emma Lim chats with colleagues at the Great North Children's Hospital in Newcastle to explore what's gone well and what they can learn...

Listen to the episodes from this page or wherever you get your podcasts.

Episode 1 - The secret of pill swallowing

Sister Ailsa Pickering, a specialist nurse working with infectious diseases in paediatrics, and Dr Emma Lim, consultant paediatrician at the Great North Children’s Hospital, discuss the practical side of learning to swallow tablets early on in life and how achieving this skill allows the patient some control over their health. Ailsa describes the steps in teaching a patient how to swallow pills and provides three top tips for success. 

Episode 2 - Quality improvement and the meaning of life

Dr Yincent Tse, a children’s kidney doctor with an interest in quality improvement, talks about the benefits of pill swallowing in relation to financial cost comparisons between liquid and pill medicines and the benefits/simplicity for everyone involved when patients are able to take pills.

Episode 3 - The secret life of pharmacists

Nicola Vasey, lead pharmacist at the Great North Children’s Hospital, discusses the role of pharmacists in pill swallowing. The cost saving outcomes were viewed as one positive effect of the project and changing university and student curriculums to involve pill swallowing was proposed as the next best step for ensuring training in pill swallowing continues.

Episode 4 - Daniel's story

Daniel was diagnosed with transverse myelitis, an autoimmune disease. After several months in hospital, he moved from only using liquid medications to taking tablet forms. Daniel describes how he was taught to swallow pills, provides top tips on how, as the patient, you can accomplish this and notes the benefits of being able to take tablets.