Rural trauma team development amongst medical trainees and traffic law enforcement professionals in a low-income country: A protocol for a prospective multi-center interrupted time series of interventional training

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundRoad traffic injuries and their resulting mortality disproportionately affect rural communities in low-middle-income countries (LMICs) due to limited human and infrastructural resources for post-crash care. Evidence from high income countries show that trauma team development training could improve the efficiency, care, and outcome of injuries. A paucity of studies has evaluated the feasibility and applicability of this concept in resource constrained settings. The aim of this study protocol is to establish the feasibility of rural trauma team development and training in a cohort of medical trainees and traffic law enforcement professionals in Uganda.MethodsMuti-center interrupted time series of prospective interventional trainings, using the rural trauma team development course (RTTDC) model of the American College of Surgeons. A team of surgeon consultants will execute the training. A prospective cohort of participants will complete a before and after training validated trauma related multiple choice questionnaire (MCQ) during September 2019-November 2023. The difference in mean pre-post training percentage MCQ scores will be compared using ANOVA-test at 95% CI. Time series regression models will be used to test for autocorrelations in performance. Acceptability and relevance of the training will be assessed using 3- and 5-point Likert scales, respectively. All analyses will be performed using Stata 15.0. Ethical approval was obtained from Research and Ethics Committee of Mbarara University of Science and Technology (Ref: MUREC 1/7, 05/05-19) and Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (Ref: SS 5082) prior recruitment. Retrospective registration was accomplished with Research Registry (UIN: researchregistry9490).HighlightsInjury related mortality significantly impact LMICs.Rural trauma teams could improve the efficiency of injury care in LMICs.This study will assess the effect of rural trauma team development training, viewing medical trainees and traffic police as potential human resources for health.The results could inform the implementation of future trauma teams in rural settings.