Estudo comparativo do consumo e gasto com medicamentos em Unidades Pediátricas de Terapia Intensiva e Semi-intensiva

objectives: to describe and compare the medication consumption and expenditure on medication at pediatric intensive and semi-intensive care units. methods: we conducted a retrospective, exploratory, descriptive study using a quantitative approach based on simple descriptive statistics. data collection was conducted from june 2007 to may 2008 at the pediatric intensive and semi-intensive care units of a teaching hospital located in the state of s？o paulo ( brazil). the abc classification was used. results: the mean expenditures/bed of the cardiology unit was us$ 880.50±0.16 bed/month. the mean expenditure/bed of the neonatal unit was us$ 962.26±0.16 bed/month. the expenditure was lower in the pediatric intensive and semi-intensive care units (us$ 163.52±0.08 bed/month). there was a significant variation in the monthly expenditure on medications regardless of the occupational rate. in class a items, the ten most expensive medications accounted for 57.1, 54.3, and 46.3% of the intensive care unit (icu) budget, respectively, in the cardiology, neonatal, and pediatric icus. at the neonatal icu, class c items corresponded to the ten most used medications, accounting for 6.6% of the neonatal icu budget, whereas at the other units, class c items corresponded to the eight most used medication, accounting for 7.8% of the cardiology icu budget and 7.7% of the pediatric icu budget. conclusion: the abc classification enabled the identification of medication consumption and expenditures on medication. this method enhances the management of resources at the units assessed.