Comparing resident operative volumes for routine general surgery cases at academic, urban community, and rural training sites.

BACKGROUND: Surgical training traditionally took place at academic centres, but changed to incorporate community and rural hospitals. As little data exist comparing resident case volumes between these locations, the objective of this study was to determine variations in these volumes for routine general surgery procedures. METHODS: We analyzed senior resident case logs from 2009 to 2019 from a general surgery residency program. We classified training centres as academic, community, and rural. Cases included appendectomy, cholecystectomy, hernia repair, bowel resection, adhesiolysis, and stoma formation or reversal. We matched procedures to blocks based on date of case and compared groups using a Poisson mixed-methods model and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: We included 85 residents and 28 532 cases. Postgraduate year (PGY) 3 residents at academic sites performed 10.9 (95% CI 10.1-11.6) cases per block, which was fewer than 14.7 (95% CI 13.6-15.9) at community and 15.3 (95% CI 14.2-16.5) at rural sites. Fourth-year residents (PGY4) showed a greater difference, with academic residents performing 8.7 (95% CI 8.0-9.3) cases per block compared with 23.7 (95% CI 22.1-25.4) in the community and 25.6 (95% CI 23.6-27.9) at rural sites. This difference continued in PGY5, with academic residents performing 8.3 (95% CI 7.3-9.3) cases per block, compared with 18.9 (95% CI 16.8-21.0) in the community and 14.5 (95% CI 7.0-21.9) at rural sites. CONCLUSION: Senior residents performed fewer routine cases at academic sites than in community and rural centres. Programs can use these data to optimize scheduling for struggling residents who require exposure to routine cases, and help residents complete the requirements of a Competence by Design curriculum.

Primary Total Knee and Total Hip Arthroplasty in the Rural Patient.

Rural patients have poorer health indicators, including higher risk of developing osteoarthritis. The objective of this study is to compare rural patients undergoing primary total joint arthroplasty (TJA) at rural hospitals with those undergoing primary TJA at urban hospitals with regards to demographics, comorbidities, and complications and to determine the preferred location of care for rural patients. Data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project National Inpatient Sample between 2016 and 2018 were analyzed. Demographics, comorbidities, inpatient complications, hospital length of stay, inpatient mortality, and discharge disposition were compared between rural patients who underwent TJA at rural hospitals and urban hospitals. Rural patients undergoing primary TJA in rural hospitals were more likely to be women, to be treated in the South, to have Medicaid payer status, to have dementia, diabetes mellitus, lung disease, and postoperative pulmonary complications, and to have a longer hospital length of stay. Those patients were also less likely to have baseline obesity, heart disease, kidney disease, liver disease, cancer, postoperative infection, and cardiovascular complications, and were less likely to be discharged home. Rural patients undergoing primary TJA tend to pursue surgery in their rural hospital when their comorbidity profile is manageable. These patients get their surgery performed in an urban setting when they have the means for travel and cost, and when their comorbidity profile is more complicated, requiring more specialized care, Rural patients are choosing to undergo their primary TJA in urban hospitals as opposed to their local rural hospitals. (Journal of Surgical Orthopaedic Advances 33(2):061-067, 2024).

More Than Half of US Rural Hospitals No Longer Offer Birthing Services-Here's Why.

This Medical News article discusses a new report on labor and delivery department closures in the rural US as well as potential financial and workforce solutions.

Lessons following implementation of a colorectal enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol in a rural hospital setting.

INTRODUCTION: Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) programs have become increasingly popular in the management of patients undergoing colorectal resection. However, the validity of ERAS in rural hospital settings without intensive care facilities has not been primarily evaluated. This study aimed to assess an ERAS protocol in a rural surgical department based in Invercargill New Zealand. METHODS: Ten years of prospectively collected data were analysed retrospectively from an ERAS database of all patients undergoing open, converted, or laparoscopic colorectal resections. Data were collected between two time periods: before the implementation of an ERAS protocol, from January 2011 to December 2013; as well as after the implementation of an ERAS protocol, from January 2014 to December 2020. The primary outcome measures were hospital length of stay (LOS) and LOS in the critical care unit (LOS-CCU). Secondary outcomes were compliance with ERAS protocol, mortality, readmission, and reoperation rates. RESULTS: A total of 118 and 558 colorectal resections were performed in the pre-ERAS and ERAS groups respectively. A statistically significant reduction in hospital LOS was achieved from a median of 8 to 7 days (P = 0.038) when comparing pre-ERAS to ERAS groups respectively. Furthermore, a significant reduction in re-operation rates was observed (7.6% vs. 3% in the ERAS group, P = 0.033) which was seen without a rise in readmission rates (13.6% vs. 13.6% in the ERAS group). CONCLUSION: The implementation of ERAS in a rural surgical setting is feasible, and these initial findings suggest ERAS adds value in optimizing the colorectal patient's surgical journey.

Quality improvement initiative: improving obstetric triaging practices in a rural maternal hospital in central India.

Triaging of obstetric patients by emergency care providers is paramount. It helps provide appropriate and timely management to prevent further injury and complications. Standardised trauma acuity scales have limited applicability in obstetric triage. Specific obstetric triage index tools improve maternal and neonatal outcomes but remain underused. The aim was to introduce a validity-tested obstetric triage tool to improve the percentage of correctly triaged patients (correctly colour-coded in accordance with triage index tool and attended to within the stipulated time interval mandated by the tool) from the baseline of 49% to more than 90% through a quality improvement (QI) process.A team of nurses, obstetricians and postgraduates did a root cause analysis to identify the possible reasons for incorrect triaging of obstetric patients using process flow mapping and fish bone analysis. Various change ideas were tested through sequential Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles to address issues identified.The interventions included introduction and application of an obstetric triage index tool, training of triage nurses and residents. We implemented these interventions in eight PDSA cycles and observed outcomes by using run charts. A set of process, output and outcome indicators were used to track if changes made were leading to improvement.Proportion of correctly triaged women increased from the baseline of 49% to more than 95% over a period of 8 months from February to September 2020, and the results have been sustained in the last PDSA cycle, and the triage system is still sustained with similar results. The median triage waiting time reduced from the baseline of 40 min to less than 10 min. There was reduction in complications attributable to improper triaging such as preterm delivery, prolonged intensive care unit stay and overall morbidity. It can be thus concluded that a QI approach improved obstetric triaging in a rural maternity hospital in India.

Effects of Trauma Center Consolidation on Adult Trauma at a Rural Level 1 Trauma Center.

OBJECTIVE: The aim was to determine the impact of consolidation of two rural level 1 trauma centers on adult trauma patients presenting to the remaining level 1 trauma center. To our knowledge, a study assessing the impact of trauma center consolidation on adult trauma patients had yet to be performed. METHODS: A single institution, retrospective study was conducted at a rural level 1 trauma center. Adult trauma patients who presented to our center from January 2017 to January 2022 were included. The cohorts spanned 33 months pre- and post-consolidation. Multiple demographic and outcome measures were gathered. Data were analyzed using the student's t-test and Chi-squared testing. RESULTS: There was a 33% increase in overall trauma activations and 9% increase in transfers from outside facilities post-consolidation. The post-consolidation group was significantly older, had higher mean injury severity score, and decreased hospital-free days. The post-consolidation group also saw an increase in ICU admission and surgical intervention. While there were no significant differences in ICU-free days or ventilator days, patients in the post-consolidation group with the highest level of activation who required both surgical intervention and ICU admission experienced decreased mortality. CONCLUSION: The consolidation of trauma services to a single level 1 trauma center in a rural Appalachian health system led to higher trauma volume and acuity, but most importantly decreased mortality for the most severely injured trauma patients.

Rurality and patients' hospital experience: A multisite analysis from a US healthcare system.

BACKGROUND: The association between rurality of patients' residence and hospital experience is incompletely described. The objective of the study was to compare hospital experience by rurality of patients' residence. METHODS: From a US Midwest institution's 17 hospitals, we included 56,685 patients who returned a post-hospital Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey. We defined rurality using rural-urban commuting area codes (metropolitan, micropolitan, small town, rural). We evaluated the association of patient characteristics with top-box score (favorable response) for 10 HCAHPS items (six composite, two individual, two global). We obtained adjusted odds ratios (aOR [95% CI]) from logistic regression models including patient characteristics. We used key driver analysis to identify associations between HCAHPS items and global rating (combined overall rating of hospital and recommend hospital). RESULTS: Of all items, overall rating of hospital had lower odds of favorable response for patients from metropolitan (0.88 [0.81-0.94]), micropolitan (0.86 [0.79-0.94]), and small towns (0.90 [0.82-0.98]) compared with rural areas (global test, P = .003). For five items, lower odds of favorable response was observed for select areas compared with rural; for example, recommend hospital for patients from micropolitan (0.88 [0.81-0.97]) but not metropolitan (0.97 [0.89-1.05]) or small towns (0.93 [0.85-1.02]). For four items, rurality showed no association. In metropolitan, micropolitan, and small towns, men vs. women had higher odds of favorable response to most items, whereas in rural areas, sex-based differences were largely absent. Key driver analysis identified care transition, communication about medicines and environment as drivers of global rating, independent of rurality. CONCLUSIONS: Rural patients reported similar or modestly more favorable hospital experience. Determinants of favorable experience across rurality categories may inform system-wide and targeted improvement.

Rural Hospitals Experienced More Patient Volume Variability Than Urban Hospitals During The COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-21.

Fluctuations in patient volume during the COVID-19 pandemic may have been particularly concerning for rural hospitals. We examined hospital discharge data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project State Inpatient Databases to compare data from the COVID-19 pandemic period (March 8, 2020-December 31, 2021) with data from the prepandemic period (January 1, 2017-March 7, 2020). Changes in average daily medical volume at rural hospitals showed a dose-response relationship with community COVID-19 burden, ranging from a 13.2 percent decrease in patient volume in periods of low transmission to a 16.5 percent increase in volume in periods of high transmission. Overall, about 35 percent of rural hospitals experienced fluctuations exceeding 20 percent (in either direction) in average daily total volume, in contrast to only 13 percent of urban hospitals experiencing similar magnitudes of changes. Rural hospitals with a large change in average daily volume were more likely to be smaller, government-owned, and critical access hospitals and to have significantly lower operating margins. Our findings suggest that rural hospitals may have been more vulnerable operationally and financially to volume shifts during the pandemic, which warrants attention because of the potential impact on these hospitals' long-term sustainability.

Rural-Urban Differences in Mortality among Mechanically Ventilated Patients in Intensive and Intermediate Care.

Rationale: Intermediate care (also termed "step-down" or "moderate care") has been proposed as a lower cost alternative to care for patients who may not clearly benefit from intensive care unit admission. Intermediate care units may be appealing to hospitals in financial crisis, including those in rural areas. Outcomes of patients receiving intermediate care are not widely described. Objectives: To examine relationships among rurality, location of care, and mortality for mechanically ventilated patients. Methods: Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years and older who received invasive mechanical ventilation between 2010 and 2019 were included. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate the association between admission to a rural or an urban hospital and 30-day mortality, with separate analyses for patients in general, intermediate, and intensive care. Models were adjusted for age, sex, area deprivation index, primary diagnosis, severity of illness, year, comorbidities, and hospital volume. Results: There were 2,752,492 hospitalizations for patients receiving mechanical ventilation from 2010 to 2019, and 193,745 patients (7.0%) were in rural hospitals. The proportion of patients in rural intermediate care increased from 4.1% in 2010 to 6.3% in 2019. Patient admissions to urban hospitals remained relatively stable. Patients in rural and urban intensive care units had similar adjusted 30-day mortality, at 46.7% (adjusted absolute risk difference -0.1% [95% confidence interval, -0.7% to 0.6%]; P = 0.88). However, adjusted 30-day mortality for patients in rural intermediate care was significantly higher (36.9%) than for patients in urban intermediate care (31.3%) (adjusted absolute risk difference 5.6% [95% confidence interval, 3.7% to 7.6%]; P < 0.001). Conclusions: Hospitalization in rural intermediate care was associated with increased mortality. There is a need to better understand how intermediate care is used across hospitals and to carefully evaluate the types of patients admitted to intermediate care units.

Comparative analysis of patient demographics, perioperative outcomes, and adverse events after lumbar spinal fusion between urban and rural hospitals: an analysis of the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database.

OBJECTIVE: Rural location of a patient's primary residence has been associated with worse clinical and surgical outcomes due to limited resource availability in these parts of the US. However, there is a paucity of literature investigating the effect that a rural hospital location may have on these outcomes specific to lumbar spine fusions. METHODS: Using the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database, we identified all patients who underwent primary lumbar spinal fusion in the years between 2009 and 2020. Patients were separated according to whether the operative hospital was considered rural or urban. Univariable and multivariable regression models were used for data analysis. RESULTS: Of 2,863,816 patients identified, 120,298 (4.2 %) had their operation at a rural hospital, with the remaining in an urban hospital. Patients in the urban cohort were younger (P < .001), more likely to have private insurance (39.81 % vs 31.95 %, P < .001), and fewer of them were in the first (22.52 % vs 43.00 %, P < .001) and second (25.96 % vs 38.90 %, P < .001) quartiles of median household income compared to the rural cohort. The urban cohort had significantly increased rates of respiratory (4.49 % vs 3.37 %), urinary (5.25 % vs 4.15 %), infectious (0.49 % vs 0.32 %), venous thrombotic (0.57 % vs 0.24 %, P < .001), and neurological (0.79 % vs 0.36 %) (all P < .001) perioperative complications. On multivariable analysis, the urban cohort had significantly increased odds of the same perioperative complications: respiratory (odds ratio[OR] = 1.48; 95 % confidence interval [CI], 1.26-1.74), urinary (OR = 1.34; 95 %CI, 1.20-1.50), infection (OR = 1.63; 95 %CI, 1.23-2.17), venous thrombotic (OR = 1.79; 95 %CI, 1.32-2.41), neurological injury (OR = 1.92; 95 %CI, 1.46-2.53), and localized infection (OR = 1.65; 95 %CI, 1.25-2.17) (all P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Patients undergoing lumbar fusions experience significantly different outcomes based on the rural or urban location of the operative hospital.

Operative Epidemiology of the First Five Years in a New African Neurosurgery Training Center: The Experience in Rural Kenya at Tenwek Hospital 2016 to 2021.

BACKGROUND: One strategy to increase the availability of neurosurgical services in underserved regions within Sub-Saharan African countries is to create new residency training programs outside of cosmopolitan cities where programs may already exist. In 2016 Tenwek Hospital in rural western Kenya began offering full-time neurosurgical services and in 2020 inaugurated a residency training program. This review highlights the operative epidemiology of the first 5 years of the hospital's neurosurgical department. METHODS: A retrospective review of all cases performed by a neurosurgeon at Tenwek Hospital between September 2016 and February 2022 was performed. Patient demographics, surgical indications, length of stay, and in-hospital mortality rates were collected. RESULTS: A total of 1756 cases were retrievable. Of these, 1006 (57.3%) were male and mean age was 30 years (range 1 day to 97 years). Mean length of stay was 11 ± 2 days and in-hospital mortality rate was 4.4% (77 patients). The most common pathologies in children comprised hydrocephalus and spina bifida (42.5% and 21.1%, respectively); in adults, cranial trauma (28.2%), oncology (25.2%), and degenerative spine (18.5%) were most common. Trauma was the leading cause of death. CONCLUSIONS: The neurosurgical caseload of a rural hospital in an underserved area can provide not only an adequate neurosurgical volume, but a robust and varied exposure that is necessary for training safe and competent surgeons who are willing to remain in their countries of origin.

Time is brain, so we must BEFAST: Improving stroke identification and triage in a rural emergency department.

OBJECTIVE: Shoalhaven District Memorial Hospital is a rural (MM3) secondary hospital which is over an hour travel time from the nearest tertiary centre. The objective of the present study was to pilot the implementation of the BEFAST (Balance, Eyes, Face, Arms, Speech and Time) stroke screening tool at the ED, and determine whether its usage improved timely stroke detection. METHODS: During initial implementation and training (October-December 2019), triage nurses consulted with senior medical officers before activating stroke calls. Data were collected for the subsequent 24 months (January 2020-2022), and retrospective records for confirmed strokes during a 24-month period prior to BEFAST implementation (October 2017-2019) were also collected. The main outcome measures were triage category, CT scan result time, discharge destination, length of stay (LOS) and Modified Rankin Score (MRS). RESULTS: After BEFAST implementation, patients (n = 268) were three times more likely to be triaged at category 1 or 2, and door-to-CT scan time was reduced by 20.7 min on average. More patients were discharged to their usual residence and more quickly (LOS 7.9 vs 11.1 days). MRS 90 days after stroke was less, and patients were nearly twice as likely to experience an improvement in neurological symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Patient outcomes were improved after implementation of the BEFAST stroke triage tool. More stroke patients were identified upon presentation to the ED, and in a timely fashion. For those with a stroke diagnosis, time-critical interventions can take place earlier, allowing patients to return home sooner, and with less disability.

Rural-urban disparities in the availability of hospital-based screening, medications for opioid use disorder, and addiction consult services.

INTRODUCTION: Hospitals are an ideal setting to stage opioid-related interventions with patients who are hospitalized due to overdose or other substance use-related complications. Transitional opioid programs-which initiate care and provide linkages upon discharge, such as screening, initiation of medications for opioid use disorder, and addiction consult services-have become the gold standard, but implementation has been uneven. The purpose of this study was to assess disparities in the availability of hospital-based transitional opioid programs, across rural and urban hospital settings in the United States. METHODS: Using hospital administrative data paired with county-level demographic data, we conducted bivariate and regression analyses to assess rural-urban differences in the availability of transitional opioid services including screening, addiction consult services, and MOUD in U.S general medical centers, controlling for hospital- and community-level factors. Our sample included 2846 general medical hospitals that completed the 2021 American Hospital Association (AHA) Annual Survey of Hospitals. Our primary outcomes were five self-reported measures: whether the hospital provided screening in the ED; provided screening in the inpatient setting; whether the hospital provided addiction consult services in the ED; provided addiction consult services in the inpatient setting; and whether the hospital provided medications for opioid use disorder. RESULTS: Rural hospitals did not have lower odds of screening for OUD or other SUDs than urban hospitals, but both micropolitan rural counties and noncore rural counties had significantly lower odds of having addiction consult services in either the ED (OR: 0.74, 95 % CI: 0.58, 0.95; OR: 0.68, 95 % CI: 0.50, 0.91) or inpatient setting (OR: 0.76, 95 % CI: 0.59, 0.97; OR: 0.68, 95 % CI: 0.50, 0.93), respectively, or of offering MOUD (OR: 0.69, 95 % CI: 0.52, 0.90; OR: 0.52, 95 % CI: 0.37, 0.74). CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that evidence-based interventions, such as medications for opioid use disorder and addiction consult services, are less often available in rural hospitals, which may contribute to rural-urban disparities in health outcomes secondary to OUD. A priority for population health improvement should be developing implementation strategies to support rural hospital adoption of transitional opioid programs.

Exploring COVID-19 census burdens by US hospital characteristics: Implications of quality reporting at rural and critical access hospitals.

PURPOSE: By assessing longitudinal associations between COVID-19 census burdens and hospital characteristics, such as bed size and critical access status, we can explore whether pandemic-era hospital quality benchmarking requires risk-adjustment or stratification for hospital-level characteristics. METHODS: We used hospital-level data from the US Department of Health and Human Services including weekly total hospital and COVID-19 censuses from August 2020 to August 2023 and the 2021 American Hospital Association survey. We calculated weekly percentages of total adult hospital beds containing COVID-19 patients. We then calculated the number of weeks each hospital spent at Extreme (≥20% of beds occupied by COVID-19 patients), High (10%-19%), Moderate (5%-9%), and Low (<5%) COVID-19 stress. We assessed longitudinal hospital-level COVID-19 stress, stratified by 15 hospital characteristics including joint commission accreditation, bed size, teaching status, critical access hospital status, and core-based statistical area (CBSA) rurality. FINDINGS: Among n = 2582 US hospitals, the median(IQR) weekly percentage of hospital capacity occupied by COVID-19 patients was 6.7%(3.6%-13.0%). 80,268/213,383 (38%) hospital-weeks experienced Low COVID-19 census stress, 28% Moderate stress, 22% High stress, and 12% Extreme stress. COVID-19 census burdens were similar across most hospital characteristics, but were significantly greater for critical access hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: US hospitals experienced similar COVID-19 census burdens across multiple institutional characteristics. Evidence-based inclusion of pandemic-era outcomes in hospital quality reporting may not require significant hospital-level risk-adjustment or stratification, with the exception of rural or critical access hospitals, which experienced differentially greater COVID-19 census burdens and may merit hospital-level risk-adjustment considerations.

Programa de cooperación quirúrgica en un hospital rural de Etiopía. ¿Podemos ofrecer cirugía de calidad? / Surgical Cooperation Program in a Rural Hospital of Ethiopia. Can we Offer Quality Surgeries?

RESUMEN Introducción: En Etiopía la asistencia quirúrgica en el medio rural es deficitaria por la falta de cirujanos y por los limitados recursos sanitarios, y este escenario subóptimo puede provocar un incremento de morbilidad y mortalidad operatoria. Objetivos: Describir las intervenciones quirúrgicas realizadas durante ocho años de cooperación en el Hospital Rural de Gambo y analizar la morbilidad y mortalidad posoperatoria. Método: Se realizó un estudio descriptivo, retrospectivo, de las intervenciones quirúrgicas practicadas en el Hospital Rural de Gambo, por un grupo de cooperación quirúrgica entre 2007-2017 en ocho campañas quirúrgicas. Se recogieron en una base de datos el sexo, edad, diagnóstico, tipo de cirugía (urgente o programada), operaciones realizadas, complicaciones posoperatorias, infecciones del sitio quirúrgico, morbilidades, reintervenciones, transfusiones de sangre y mortalidad posoperatoria. Resultados: Se operaron 587 pacientes, 389 de cirugía general, 78 de obstetricia-ginecología, 77 lesiones urológicas y 38 pacientes de traumatología. El 13 por ciento (89) pacientes fueron operados de urgencia. Se aplicó anestesia general con intubación traqueal a 143 pacientes, anestesia raquídea en 167 casos y anestesia local en 277. En cirugía mayor (310 pacientes), la mortalidad fue 2 por ciento, con 5,3 por ciento de infección del sitio quirúrgico, 3 reintervenciones (1 por ciento) y 9 (3 por ciento) transfusiones sanguíneas perioperatorias. Conclusiones: Para la cooperación quirúrgica en el entorno rural de Etiopía es necesaria una formación adicional en cirugía obstétrica-ginecológica, urología y traumatología. A pesar de los escasos medios tecnológicos del Hospital Rural de Gambo es posible realizar una cirugía mayor con seguridad, con un bajo índice de infecciones de herida, de necesidades transfusionales, reoperaciones y mortalidad(AU)

ABSTRACT Introduction: In Ethiopia, surgical assistance in rural areas is deficient due to the lack of surgeons and limited health resources. This suboptimal setting can cause an increase in morbidity and surgical mortality. Objectives: To describe the surgical interventions carried out during eight years of cooperation in Gambo Rural Hospital and analyze the postoperative morbidity and mortality. Method: A retrospective and descriptive study of the surgical interventions performed at Gambo Rural Hospital was carried out by a surgical cooperation group between 2007-2017 in eight surgical campaigns. Sex, age, diagnosis, type of surgery (urgent or scheduled), carried out operations, postoperative complications, surgical site infections, morbidities, reoperations, blood transfusions and postoperative mortality were collected in a database. Results: 587 patients were operated on: 389 for general surgery, 78 for obstetrics-gynecology, 77 urological lesions, and 38 for traumatology. 13 percent (89) patients were operated urgently. General anesthesia with tracheal intubation was applied to 143 patients, spinal anesthesia was used in 167 cases and local anesthesia was used in 277 cases. In major surgery (310 patients), mortality was 2 percent, with 5.3 percent of surgical site infection, 3 reinterventions (1 percent) and 9 (3 percent) perioperative blood transfusions. Conclusions: Additional training in obstetric-gynecological surgery, urology and traumatology is necessary for surgical cooperation in the rural setting of Ethiopia. Despite the scarce technological means of Gambo Rural Hospital, it is possible to perform major surgery safely, with a low rate of wound infections, transfusion needs, reoperations and mortality(AU)

Patient attrition from the HIV antiretroviral therapy program at two hospitals in Haiti / Abandono del programa de tratamiento antirretrovírico de la infección por el VIH en pacientes de dos hospitales de Haití

OBJECTIVE: To identify factors associated with antiretroviral therapy (ART) attrition among patients initiating therapy in 2005-2011 at two large, public-sector department-level hospitals, and to inform interventions to improve ART retention. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study used data from the iSanté electronic medical record (EMR) system. The study characterized ART attrition levels and explored the patient demographic, clinical, temporal, and service utilization factors associated with ART attrition, using time-to-event analysis methods. RESULTS: Among the 2 023 patients in the study, ART attrition on average was 17.0 per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval (CI): 15.8-18.3). In adjusted analyses, risk of ART attrition was up to 89% higher for patients living in distant communes compared to patients living in the same commune as the hospital (hazard ratio: 1.89, 95%CI: 1.54-2.33; P < 0.001). Hospital site, earlier year of ART start, spending less time enrolled in HIV care prior to ART initiation, receiving a non-standard ART regimen, lacking counseling prior to ART initiation, and having a higher body mass index were also associated with attrition risk. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest quality improvement interventions at the two hospitals, including: enhanced retention support and transportation subsidies for patients accessing care from remote areas; counseling for all patients prior to ART initiation; timely outreach to patients who miss ART pick-ups; "bridging services" for patients transferring care to alternative facilities; routine screening for anticipated interruptions in future ART pick-ups; and medical case review for patients placed on non-standard ART regimens. The findings are also relevant for policymaking on decentralization of ART services in Haiti.

OBJETIVO: Determinar los factores asociados con el abandono del tratamiento antirretrovírico en los pacientes que iniciaron el tratamiento en el período del 2005 al 2011 en dos grandes hospitales públicos de nivel departamental, y fundamentar las intervenciones necesarias para mejorar la retención de los pacientes en el tratamiento. MÉTODOS: Este estudio retrospectivo de cohortes empleó los datos del sistema de registro médico electrónico iSanté. Se describieron los niveles de abandono del tratamiento y se exploraron los factores demográficos, clínicos, temporales y de utilización de los servicios que se asociaban con su abandono, usando métodos de análisis del tiempo trascurrido hasta un evento. RESULTADOS: El abandono del tratamiento entre los 2 023 pacientes incluidos en el estudio fue en promedio de 17,0 por 100 personas-años (intervalo de confianza (IC) de 95%: 15,8-18,3). En los análisis ajustados, el riesgo de abandono del tratamiento fue de hasta 89% mayor en los pacientes que vivían en comunas distantes, en comparación con los pacientes que vivían en la misma comuna en que se ubicaba el hospital (razón de riesgo: 1,89; IC de 95%: 1,54-2,33; P < 0,001). La ubicación del hospital, el inicio del tratamiento en un año calendario anterior, un menor tiempo de inclusión en el programa de atención a la infección por el VIH antes de iniciar el tratamiento, la administración de un régimen terapéutico no estándar, la falta de orientación antes de iniciar el tratamiento y un mayor índice de masa corporal también se asociaron con un riesgo más elevado de abandono. CONCLUSIONES: Los resultados sugieren algunas intervenciones de mejora de la calidad en ambos hospitales, entre ellas: un mayor apoyo a la retención y subsidios de transporte para los pacientes que acuden desde zonas remotas para ser atendidos; la orientación a todos los pacientes antes del inicio del tratamiento antirretrovírico; el contacto oportuno de los servicios con los pacientes que omiten alguna recogida de medicación; "servicios de conexión" para transferir la atención de los pacientes a otros establecimientos alternativos; el tamizaje sistemático de las interrupciones previstas en las próximas recogidas de medicación; y la revisión médica de los casos de pacientes que siguen un tratamiento no estándar. Estos hallazgos son también pertinentes en materia de formulación de políticas de descentralización de los servicios de tratamiento antirretrovírico en Haití.

Perfil de la consulta dermatológica en el servicio de urgencia del hospital de Quellón / Profile of dermatologic consultation in the emergency service of hospital Quellon

Las consultas por enfermedades dermatológicas en los servicios de urgencia presentan una baja frecuencia y poseen una pobre descripción de sus características en la literatura. A raíz de lo anterior, confeccionamos un estudio descriptivo y retrospectivo de las consultas dermatológicas realizadas en el Servicio de Urgencia del Hospital de Quellón, entre Abril 2010 y Marzo 2011. Los resultados mostraron que las causas dermatológicas representan un 4.9 por ciento del total de consultas. Esta cifra varía durante el transcurso del año, evidenciándose una mayor frecuencia en los meses de verano. Además, se observó que la proporción de consultas de urgencias atribuibles a una enfermedad de la piel es mayor en pacientes pediátricos y adolescentes que en los pacientes adultos. Finalmente, del total de consultas dermatológicas, las etiologías infecciosas y alérgicas fueron las diagnosticadas con mayor frecuencia. No se evidenció una diferencia estadísticamente significativa entre los promedios de consultas pediátrico adolescentes y de población adulta, entre las distintas estaciones del año.

The dermatological consultations in the emergency services have a low frequency and a poor description of its features in the literature. Therefore, we made a descriptive and retrospective study of dermatology consultations conducted in the hospital emergency service of Quellón, between April 2010 and March 2011. The results showed that skin pathology represent 4.9 percent of all consultations. This number varies throughout the year, showing a higher frequency in the summer months. In addition, we observed that the proportion of emergency visits attributable to a skin disease is higher in pediatric and adolescent patients than in adult patients. Finally, for all dermatological consultations, infectious and allergic etiologies were the more frequently diagnosed. No statistically significant difference was showed between pediatric adolescent and adult consultations, during the different seasons.

Forma de acceso a los Servicios de Urgencia hospitalarios y pertinencia de la consulta / Means of access to hospital emergency departments and relevance of the consultation

Objetivo. Conocer las diferentes formas de acceso a los Servicios de Urgencia Hospitalarios (SUH), valorar la adecuación de las consultas allí atendidas y analizar la posible asociación entre forma de acceso y adecuación, así como con otros factores relacionados. Diseño. Estudio observacional transversal. Emplazamiento. Servicio de urgencias hospitalario. Participantes. Pacientes que acuden al SUH, espontáneamente o derivados por Servicios de Urgencia Extrahospitalarios (SUE) o médico de atención primaria (MAP). No hubo negativas a contestar. Mediciones principales. Cuestionario elaborado ad hoc con 14 variables: sociodemográficas y otras relacionadas con la forma de remisión y el tipo de consulta en el SUH. La encuesta fue llevada a cabo en el SUH por los investigadores que prestaban la asistencia a la totalidad de los pacientes atendidos por ellos en cada jornada de servicio. Resultados. Fueron analizadas 264 encuestas. El 77,6% (205) de los casos se corresponde con cuadros agudos de inicio y patología de tipo traumatológico. En 74 casos (28,0%) el paciente había consultado previamente a su MAP por este mismo motivo. En los pacientes remitidos por su MAP, en el 68,4% de los casos procedía la consulta en el SUH. En los pacientes que acudían espontáneamente este porcentaje era del 25,7%. No se constataron diferencias en el porcentaje de pacientes en los que no procedía consulta urgente. Los pacientes que acudían espontáneamente al SUH eran más jóvenes (diferencia de medias 9,2 años; IC 95%: 3,4-14,9; p = 0,001) y procedían mayoritariamente del medio urbano (x2 = 9,8; p = 0,002). Conclusiones. La mayoría de los pacientes que demandan atención urgente lo hacen mediante el bypass de los SUE, fenómeno influido por la procedencia urbana, una menor edad y la existencia de ingresos previos. La remisión por SUE o MAP mejora la pertinencia de la consulta en los SUH (AU)

Objective. To determine the different means of access to hospital emergency departments (ED), assess the appropriateness of consultations given there and analyze the possible association between access and appropriateness as well as other related factors. Design. Observational cross-sectional study. Setting. Hospital Emergency Departments. Participants. Patients who go to the ED on their own accord or are referred by Prehospital Emergency Care (PEC) services or a General Practitioner (GP). No-one refused to answer the questionnaire. Measurements. Ad hoc questionnaire with 14 variables: socio-demographic and others related with the means of access and type of consultation in the ED. The survey was conducted in the ED by the researchers who provided care to all patients seen by them on each shift. Results. A total of 264 surveys were analyzed. 77.6% (205) of cases were due to acute episodes of disease onset and trauma related events. At total of 74 (28.0%) patients had previously consulted their GP for the same reason. For 68.4% of the patients referred by their GP and 25% of the patients who came on their own accord the consultation in the ED was appropriate. There were no differences in the percentage of patients whose emergency consultation was not appropriate. Patients who came to ED on their own accord were younger (mean difference 9.2 years, 95% CI: 3.4-14.9, p = 0.001) and mostly came from urban areas (x2 = 9.8, p = 0.002). Conclusions. Most patients requiring emergency care access the ED through the PEC service, this is influenced by the urban origin, younger age and the existence of previous admissions. Referrals by PEC or GP improves the appropriateness of the consultations in the ED (AU)

Análisis transversal de la insuficiencia cardiaca en pacientes de un servicio de medicina interna de un hospital de tercer nivel de área mixta (rural y urbana). Parte I: análisis epidemiológico (Primera de tres partes) / Cross-sectional analysis of heart failure in patients intaked in the service of internal medicine at a third level hospital. Part I: epidemiologic analysis

Objetivos: Evaluar las características epidemiológicas de los pacientes ingresados en un servicio de medicina interna por insuficiencia cardíaca descompensada a lo largo de 5 años Material y métodos: Estudio descriptivo transversal, retrospectivo, de pacientes ingresados en el Servicio de Medicina Interna del Hospital Clínico Universitario de Santiago de Compostela a lo largo de 5 años (desde 1999 hasta 2003). Se registraron las variables: sexo, edad, días de ingreso, número de reingresos por insuficiencia cardíaca, motivo de ingreso, hipertensión arterial (HTA) previa, diabetes mellitus (DM) previa, cardiopatía previa, cardiopatía isquémica previa, fibrilación auricular (FA) previa, consumo de beta-bloqueantes previos al ingreso, cifras de presión arterial (PA) al ingreso, realización de ecocardiografía durante el ingreso, fracción de eyección (FE) según ecocardiograma, factor desencadenante, exitus, tratamiento domiciliario al alta. Para el análisis estadístico se emplearon los estadísticos descriptivos cuantitativos y cualitativos que correspondieran; para el análisis bivariante se emplearon chi-cuadrado y “t-student”; y se empleó el análisis multivariante para comprobar la influencia de determinados factores en la realización de ecocardiogramas a los pacientes ingresados. Resultados: Se incluyeron 248 pacientes. Se observó un predominio de sexo femenino (55,2%), y una mediana de edad de 77 años (rango intercuartílico de 13 años) esta fue superior en mujeres (79 años, vs 73 años en varones, p < 0,001). La estancia media fue de 13,61 días (12,2-15,0 días) y mediana de 11 días (rango intercuartílico de 9 días). El 41,8% de los pacientes eran hipertensos conocidos, 30,9% diabéticos y el 81,1% presentaban alguna cardiopatía. Las causas más frecuentes de insuficiencia cardiaca fueron la cardiopatía isquémica (27,2%) y la hipertensión (24,2%). El síntoma más frecuente que motivó el ingreso fue la disnea (68,9%). Se realizó ecocardiograma al 20,9% de los pacientes, de los que el 54,9% presentaban función sistólica conservada y el 45,1% descenso de la fracción de eyección. El único factor que se relacionó con el bajo porcentaje de realización de ecocardiogramas fue el tiempo de ingreso del paciente. La causa más frecuente de descompensación cardíaca fue la infección respiratoria (39,5%). Fallecieron el 8,6% de los pacientes ingresados. El tratamiento más prescrito para domicilio fueron los diuréticos (86,9%), seguido de nitratos transdérmicos (49,5%). Se administraron IECAS/ARA-II al 42,8% de los pacientes y beta-bloqueantes al 0,9%. Conclusiones: El número de ecocardiogramas realizados a los pacientes es muy inferior al aconsejado por las sociedades internacionales e inferior al de registros realizados por cardiólogos. El empleo de beta-bloqueantes e IECAs es inferior al aconsejado por las recomendaciones internacionales e inferior al realizado por cardiólogos en sus propias unidades

Objectives: To observe the epidemiologic caractheristics of the patients intaked during five years in a internal medicine department, with heart failure. Methods: A cross-sectional study of the intaked patients in the Internal Medicine Service in the Hospital Clínico Universitario de Santiago de Compostela between 1999 to 2003. The variables analized were: sex, age, days of hospital stay, number of intaked by failure cardiac, reason for admission (guide symptom), hypertension, diabetes mellitus, cardiac disease, fibrillation atrium, previous treatment with beta-blockers, blood pressure in the admission moment, to make echocardiography, disfunction systolic, etiology, deceased, treatment at the end. The statistical analysis was performed with cualitative and cuantitative measures, chicuadrado and t-student, and multivariant analyses. Results: 248 patients were accepted for the study. We observed more women than men (55.2%) and bigger median age (79 years old vs. 73 years old in men, p < 0.001). The mean income was 13.61 days and a median of 11 days. The 41,8% of the patients had hypertension, 30.9% diabetes mellitus and 81,9% had someone heart disease. The aetiologies of heart failure most frequents were ischemic cardiopathy (27.2%) and hypertension (24.2%). The most frequent simptom was the dyspnea (68.9%). It made echocardiography in 20.9% of patients and 45.1% showed systolic disfuntion. The only factor related with this small percentage of echocardiographies was the incoming time. The most frequent etiology was respiratories infections (39.5%). The 8.6% of patients was decesed. The pharmacologic treatment more prescribed were the diuretics (86.9%) and transcutaneus nitrates (49.5%). It was indicated ECAI or AAR-II in the 86.9% of patients and beta-blockers in 0.9%. Conclusions: The number of echocardiograms practiced to the patients is smaller that the number advised by international associations and smaller to the cardiologist registers. The beta-blockers and ECAI use is smaller too

Assessing the causes of under-five mortality in the Albert Schweitzer Hospital service area of rural Haiti

OBJETIVOS: Hay poca información acerca de las causas de mortalidad en niños menores de cinco años en casi todos los países donde la mortalidad alcanza las cifras más altas. El objetivo del presente estudio fue usar un protocolo computadorizado estandarizado para determinar cuáles son las principales causas de muerte entre los niños de una zona rural de Haití que tiene tasas de mortalidad elevadas, así como llamar la atención a la necesidad de realizar estudios semejantes en otros lugares de Haití y en todas las zonas de América Latina y el Caribe donde la mortalidad es alta. MÉTODOS: En 2001 se administró un cuestionario estándar de autopsia verbal a base de preguntas cerradas, respaldado por la Organización Mundial de la Salud, a una muestra poblacional representativa de las madres o guardianes de 97 niños que habían fallecido entre 1995 y 1999 antes de cumplir los 5 años de edad en la zona atendida por el Hospital Albert Schweitzer, situado en el valle rural de Artibonita en Haití. Los datos obtenidos mediante los cuestionarios permitieron crear un algoritmo computadorizado para generar los diagnósticos asociados con la causa de muerte. El algoritmo daba cabida a más de una causa de muerte. RESULTADOS: La infección respiratoria baja (IRB) fue el diagnóstico más frecuente, habiéndose encontrado en 45% de las defunciones de niños menores de 5 años. Le siguieron las enfermedades entéricas, que se hallaron en 21% de los casos. El tétanos neonatal, el nacimiento prematuro y otras causas neonatales tempranas que no se asociaban con una IRB ni con diarrea estuvieron presentes en 41% de los casos de muerte neonatal. Entre los niños de 1 a 59 meses de edad, se encontró el diagnóstico de IRB en 51% de los casos de defunción y el de alguna enfermedad entérica en 30%. Las defunciones se produjeron eminentemente en los primeros meses de vida, con 35% de ellas durante el primer mes. De las muertes neonatales, 27% tuvieron lugar durante el primer día de vida, y 80% en los primeros 10 días después de nacer...