Citation

Mehmood A, Zia N, Hoe C, Kobusingye OC, Ssenyojo H, Hyder AA. BMC Res. Notes 2018; 11(1): e299.

Affiliation

Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit, Health Systems Program, Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group - BMC)

DOI

10.1186/s13104-018-3419-1

PMID

29764476

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Lack of data on traumatic brain injuries (TBI) hinders the appreciation of the true magnitude of the TBI burden. This paper describes a scientific approach for hospital based systematic data collection in a low-income country. The registry is based on the evaluation framework for injury surveillance systems which comprises a four-step approach: (1) identifying characteristics that assess a surveillance system, (2) review of the identified variables based on adopted specific, measurable, assignable, realistic, and time-related criteria, (3) assessment of the proposed variables and system characteristics by an expert panel, and (4) development and application of a rating system.

RESULTS: The electronic hospital-based TBI registry is designed through a collaborative approach to capture comprehensive, yet context specific, information on each TBI case, from the time of injury until death or discharge from the hospital. It includes patients' demographics, pre-hospital and hospital assessment and care, TBI causes, injury severity, and patient outcomes. The registry in Uganda will open the opportunity to replicate the process in other similar context and contribute to a better understanding of TBI in these settings, and feed into the global agenda of reducing deaths and disabilities from TBI in low-and middle-income countries.

Language: en

Keywords

Injury; Low-income country; Registry; Surveillance; Trauma; Traumatic brain injuries; Uganda