Qualitative Analysis of Electronic Trauma Registry and Guideline Implementation at an Academic Hospital in Havana, Cuba
Berenice Ramirez Leal, Jaclyn A Gellings, Ana J Johnson Escauriza, Yamilé Valdés González, Karla Dieguez Gómez, Susana Celestrín Marcos, Elaine Hernández Morales, Miguel A González Aguiar, Maray A Pérez Escalante, Davel A Milian Valdés, Janet Roger Cordero, Celeste Pain, Mayelin Durruthy Álvarez, Marc A de Moya, Katherine R Iverson
Keywords :
Electronic data processing, Practice guideline, Qualitative evaluation, T6 Health Systems Mobile Application
Citation Information :
Leal BR, Gellings JA, Escauriza AJ, González YV, Gómez KD, Marcos SC, Morales EH, Aguiar MA, Escalante MA, Valdés DA, Cordero JR, Pain C, Álvarez MD, de Moya MA, Iverson KR. Qualitative Analysis of Electronic Trauma Registry and Guideline Implementation at an Academic Hospital in Havana, Cuba. Panam J Trauma Crit Care Emerg Surg 2024; 13 (3):108-113.
Aim and background: Trauma registries have been developed to track patient characteristics and outcomes to develop clinical decision tools. However, maintenance of trauma registries can be time-intensive and expensive, particularly in resource-limited areas. This qualitative study aims to assess the feasibility of implementing a real-time electronic data capture system and clinical practice guideline (CPG) platform, T6 Health Systems Mobile Application (T6), in the Calixto-Garcia Hospital's (CGH) emergency and trauma department in Havana, Cuba.
Materials and methods: Our qualitative study utilized six 8-hour focus groups with nine participants each over 4 months to determine which aspects of T6 would be best adapted for CGH and to identify challenges to its use. Focus group participants were chosen via convenience sampling, and a grounded theory approach for thematic analysis was used to identify common themes. Transcripts were reviewed by two independent reviewers.
Results: Four major priorities for the implementation of T6 at CGH were identified: prehospital-hospital communication, T6 customization, training on trauma scoring systems, and incorporation of CPG for education and clinical decision-making. Challenges to the integration of this system include language barriers, unreliable internet connectivity, and prohibitive costs.
Conclusion: Our study reveals the complexities of integrating an electronic trauma registry and guidelines in a resource-limited setting. Implementation of T6, although challenging, highlights the potential to enhance patient outcomes, interdisciplinary communication, and hospital efficiency.
Clinical significance: This study demonstrated facilitators and barriers to implementing a real-time electronic data capture system and CPG platform for trauma patients in a major trauma center in Cuba.
Reynolds TA, Stewart B, Drewett I, et al. The impact of trauma care systems in low- and middle-income countries. Annu Rev Public Health 2017;38:507–532. DOI: 10.1146/annurev-publhealth-032315-021412
Shanthakumar D, Payne A, Leitch T, et al. Trauma care in low- and middle-income countries. Surg J (N Y) 2021;7(4):e281–e285. DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1732351
Bommakanti K, Feldhaus I, Motwani G, et al. Trauma registry implementation in low- and middle-income countries: challenges and opportunities. J Surg Res 2018;223:72–86. DOI: 10.1016/j.jss.2017.09.039
Asadi F, Paydar S. Presenting an evaluation model of the trauma registry software. Int J Med Inform 2018;112:99–103. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2018.01.013
MacKenzie EJ, Rivara FP, Jurkovich GJ, et al. A national evaluation of the effect of trauma-center care on mortality. N Engl J Med 2006;354(4):366–378. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMsa052049
Nathens AB, Jurkovich GJ, Rivara FP, et al. Effectiveness of state trauma systems in reducing injury-related mortality: a national evaluation. J Trauma 2000;48(1):25–30; discussion 30–31. DOI: 10.1097/00005373-200001000-00005
Roudsari BS, Nathens AB, Arreola-Risa C, et al. Emergency Medical Service (EMS) systems in developed and developing countries. Injury 2007;38(9):1001–1013. DOI: 10.1016/j.injury.2007.04.008
Hoque DME, Kumari V, Hoque M, et al. Impact of clinical registries on quality of patient care and clinical outcomes: a systematic review. PLoS One 2017;12(9):e0183667. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0183667
Zargaran E, Spence R, Adolph L, et al. Association between real-time electronic injury surveillance applications and clinical documentation and data acquisition in a South African Trauma Center. JAMA Surg 2018;153(5):e180087. DOI: 10.1001/jamasurg.2018.0087
Chapman AL, Hadfield M, Chapman CJ. Qualitative research in healthcare: an introduction to grounded theory using thematic analysis. J R Coll Physicians Edinb 2015;45(3):201–205. DOI: 10.4997/JRCPE.2015.305
Bhattarai HK, Bhusal S, Barone-Adesi F, et al. Prehospital emergency care in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review. Prehosp Disaster Med 2023;38(4):495–512. DOI: 10.1017/S1049023X23006088
Zhang Z, Sarcevic A, Burd RS. Supporting information use and retention of pre-hospital information during trauma resuscitation: a qualitative study of pre-hospital communications and information needs. AMIA Annu Symp Proc 2013;2013:1579–1588. PMID: 24551428.
Niyonsaba M, Nkeshimana M, Uwitonze JM, et al. Challenges and opportunities to improve efficiency and quality of prehospital emergency care using an mHealth platform: qualitative study in Rwanda. Afr J Emerg Med 2023;13(4):250–257. DOI: 10.1016/j.afjem.2023.07.002
Spence RT, Zargaran E, Hameed SM, et al. Mobile health technology transforms injury severity scoring in South Africa. J Surg Res 2016;204(2):384–392. DOI: 10.1016/j.jss.2016.05.021
Rosenkrantz L, Schuurman N, Arenas C, et al. Maximizing the potential of trauma registries in low-income and middle-income countries. Trauma Surg Acute Care Open 2020;5(1):e000469. DOI: 10.1136/tsaco-2020-000469
Rating the severity of tissue damage. I. The abbreviated scale. JAMA 1971;215(2):277–280. DOI: 10.1001/jama.1971.03180150059012
Jallo J, Loftus CM, editors. Neurotrauma and Critical Care of the Brain. Stuttgart: Georg Thieme Verlag; 2018.
Joosse P, de Jongh MAC, van Delft-Schreurs CC, et al. Improving performance and agreement in injury coding using the abbreviated injury scale: a training course helps. Health Inf Manag 2014;43(2):17–22. DOI: 10.1177/183335831404300203
Hari P, Alhasan K, Bagga A, et al. Importance of clinical practice guidelines to practicing pediatric nephrologists and IPNA survey. Pediatr Nephrol 2021;36(11):3493–3497. DOI: 10.1007/s00467-021-05105-9
Dans AL, Dans LF, Lanas F. Guidelines in low and middle income countries paper 1: scoping clinical practice guidelines in Chile and the Philippines. J Clin Epidemiol 2020;127:175–176. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2020.07.008
Cabra-Bautista G, Florez ID, Calvache JA. Clinical practice guidelines in low and middle income countries: experiences from Colombia. J Clin Epidemiol 2021;138:232–233. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2021.05.024
Mejia-Oquendo M, Marulanda-Ibarra E, Gomez-Marin JE. Evaluation of the impact of the first evidence-based guidelines for congenital toxoplasmosis in Armenia (Quindío) Colombia: an observational retrospective analysis. Lancet Reg Health Am 2021;1:100010. DOI: 10.1016/j.lana.2021.100010
Kesinger MR, Nagy LR, Sequeira DJ, et al. A standardized trauma care protocol decreased in-hospital mortality of patients with severe traumatic brain injury at a teaching hospital in a middle-income country. Injury 2014;45(9):1350–1354. DOI: 10.1016/j.injury.2014.04.037