Purpose: To analyse the cohort of patients admitted to the National Burns Unit in St James’ Hospital.
Objectives: Currently there is no national burns injury database within Ireland. This study aims to identify the need for such a database within the National Burns Unit at St James’s Hospital (SJH). The collection and analysis of accumulative data would promote further service development. (Dunn, 2017)
As per the National Burn Care Standards (2013) an assessment should be carried out within one working day of admission to the Burns service. This study aims to investigate the average time to physiotherapy assessment at present in the SJH Burns unit.
The data collected during this study will provide information on patient demographics including percentage of surgical interventions, length of stay (LOS), most common burn types and the mean percentage of total burn surface area (TBSA).
The study has also been employed to investigate the most appropriate outcome measures in the acute burns population.
Methods:
1. Creation of a database on Microsoft Excel.
2. Staff updated and educated on the use of the database.
3. Data inputted on all new patients admitted to the Burns unit in SJH during the months of March and April 2017 utilising the Electronic Patient Record (EPR).
4. Outcome measure specific to each patient completed and recorded as appropriate.
5. Data analysis was completed utilising Microsoft Excel.
Results: 27 patients (Male = 15, Female = 12) were admitted to the National Burns unit at SJH during the months of March and April in 2017. The average age was 50 years, ranging from 16 to 90 years of age. The average TBSA was 12% (Min 11%, Max 80%). The most common burn type was flame (48%), followed by scald (37%), contact (7%), electric and chemical (4%). 65% of patients received at least one surgical intervention during their admission. The most commonly effected area was the arms (44%), legs (41%), head/face (37%), chest/abdomen (22%), back (22%), buttocks (18%) and feet (15%). The average time from admission to physiotherapy assessment was 35.47 hours. The average LOS 15.68 days. The utilised outcome measures were TUAG (N = 5) and CPAX (N = 4).
Conclusion:
The collection of this data provides insight into the patient demographic of the National Burns Unit at SJH. This provides evidence for the creation of a long standing database to allow future research and development in the area. The insight into the TBSA, most commonly effected areas and burn type gives understanding into the role of physiotherapy in this environment.
The data collected identified that the average time to assessment was outside the 24 hours recommended in the guidelines. The study identified the lack of specific outcome measures for the acute burns patients – akin to the current literature.
References:
National Network for Burn Care - National Burn Care Standards (2013)
Available at: http://www.britishburnassociat...
(Accessed 11th February 2017)
Dunn, Ken. (2017) The International Burns Injury Database. Available at: www.ibidb.org/ibid (Accessed 28th April 2017)
