Emergency department visits and emergency-to-inpatient admissions for abnormal uterine bleeding in the USA nationwide.

BACKGROUND: Abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) is a common but understudied gynaecological problem, and data are lacking on emergency department (ED) visits and associated ED-to-inpatient admissions for AUB. This project aims to further understanding of the burden of AUB on patients and the healthcare system by establishing the number and characteristics of women with AUB in the ED and evaluating predictors of AUB-related inpatient hospitalisation in the USA. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study of women presenting to the ED with non-malignant AUB in the 2016 US Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS). Clinical, demographic and hospital system factors were evaluated. χ2 and Mann-Whitney tests were used to compare the proportion of visits with each characteristic, resulting in inpatient admission versus discharge from the ED. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to analyse predictors of AUB in the ED and of AUB-related hospitalisations. RESULTS: There were 1.03 million AUB-related visits in the 2016 NEDS, of which 11.2% resulted in inpatient admission. Clinical as well as demographic and hospital system factors influenced ED disposition. Women with AUB tended to be of reproductive age, be underinsured, live in lower income and urban areas, and present to urban and public hospitals. However, older age, higher income, better insurance, presentation to private hospitals and rural residence predicted inpatient admission. CONCLUSIONS: Our study highlights the ED as an essential place of care for women with AUB while also demonstrating the importance of access to outpatient gynaecology services as some AUB-related ED visits may be preventable with outpatient care. The significant demographic and hospital system differences, as well as expected clinical differences, between women with AUB admitted to inpatient and women discharged from the ED imply structural biases impacting AUB-related ED care and add to the deepening understanding of health disparities.

Health and sustainable development; strengthening peri-operative care in low income countries to improve maternal and neonatal outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Uganda is far from meeting the sustainable development goals on maternal and neonatal mortality with a maternal mortality ratio of 383/100,000 live births, and 33% of the women gave birth by 18 years. The neonatal mortality ratio was 29/1000 live births and 96 stillbirths occur every day due to placental abruption, and/or eclampsia - preeclampsia and other unkown causes. These deaths could be reduced with access to timely safe surgery and safe anaesthesia if the Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care services (CEmONC), and appropriate intensive care post operatively were implemented. A 2013 multi-national survey by Epiu et al. showed that, the Safe Surgical Checklist was not available for use at main referral hospitals in East Africa. We, therefore, set out to further assess 64 government and private hospitals in Uganda for the availability and usage of the WHO Checklists, and investigate the post-operative care of paturients; to advocate for CEmONC implementation in similarly burdened low income countries. METHODS: The cross-sectional survey was conducted at 64 government and private hospitals in Uganda using preset questionnaires. RESULTS: We surveyed 41% of all hospitals in Uganda: 100% of the government regional referral hospitals, 16% of government district hospitals and 33% of all private hospitals. Only 22/64 (34.38%: 95% CI = 23.56-47.09) used the WHO Safe Surgical Checklist. Additionally, only 6% of the government hospitals and 14% not-for profit hospitals had access to Intensive Care Unit (ICU) services for postoperative care compared to 57% of the private hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: There is urgent need to make WHO checklists available and operationalized. Strengthening peri-operative care in obstetrics would decrease maternal and neonatal morbidity and move closer to the goal of safe motherhood working towards Universal Health Care.

Linking Global Health to Local Health within an Ob/Gyn Residency Program.

An unprecedented number of medical students and residents express the desire to participate in global health work during their training and beyond. Preparing learners for work in underserved settings makes it more likely that they will continue to work in areas of need. Training programs that focus on global health have been criticized as there is ample work to be done in the US, and often global health work becomes learner-centric, which is difficult to maintain and potentially burdensome and harmful to the host site. In this article, we discuss a curriculum and training program that intentionally prepares learners to work responsibly and collaboratively in low-resource settings, both nationally and globally.

Opportunities and barriers in global women's health training during obstetrics and gynecology residencies in the USA.

OBJECTIVE: To systematically measure the scope and breadth of global women's health (GWH) training opportunities during obstetrics and gynecology residencies in the USA, as described by program directors (PDs). METHODS: In a questionnaire-based study, PDs were asked to complete a web-based survey between January 1 and March 15, 2013. Information about the residency program and GWH opportunities was obtained. RESULTS: Among 236 PDs contacted, 105 (44.5%) responded. Overall, 82 (78.1%) reported that at least one resident had participated in a GWH rotation during the past 5 years, 36 (34.3%) offered formal didactics, and 29 (27.6%) offered a formal rotation in GWH. Among all respondents, 43 (42.2%) reported having at least one faculty member for whom GWH is a dedicated part of their practice. Programs with dedicated GWH faculty were more likely to offer formal GWH didactics (relative risk [RR] 1.84; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.07-3.14; P=0.03), but were not significantly more likely to offer a formal GWH rotation (RR 1.91; 95% CI 0.97-3.70; P=0.06). CONCLUSION: Many residency programs provide opportunities for GWH training, but few offer formal didactics or a formal rotation.