Affiliation:
1. Department of General Surgery Broome Regional Hospital Broome Western Australia Australia
2. State Trauma Unit Royal Perth Hospital Perth Western Australia Australia
3. School of Medicine University of Notre Dame Australia (Fremantle) Fremantle Western Australia Australia
Abstract
AbstractBackgroundThe rise in popularity of ride share e‐scooters has led to an increase in the number of e‐scooter injuries, with existing literature reporting increases in rates of admission by more than 350%. In April 2023, the Broome Shire signed a contract to provide 300 e‐scooters as part of a shared micro mobility platform. This study aimed to describe the demographics, clinical presentation and health system utilization of patients presenting with e‐scooter‐related injuries at Broome Regional Hospital (BRH).MethodsA retrospective cohort study examined all e‐scooter‐related injuries presenting to BRH between April 1st 2023 and April 30th 2024. Patients with e‐scooter injuries described in their Emergency Department (ED) electronic triage records were included. Data was collected from chart review.ResultsA total of 190 patients were identified as having sustained an e‐scooter injuries over the 12‐month trial period. The median age was 26 years with equal numbers of males and females. Most injuries occurred between 6 pm and 12 am (28%) with 53% of patients reporting being intoxicated, while 75% were not wearing a helmet. Almost all patients (80%) were managed in the emergency department because of the low severity of their injuries. Of the remaining patients, 22 were admitted, with 16 transferred for tertiary‐level operative management.ConclusionThe introduction of e‐scooters for shared micromobility represents a new cause of trauma related presentations to BRH. Our study's results have raised awareness regarding the incidence and severity of electric scooter injuries in Broome.