TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2016//
TI  - The burden of road traffic injuries in an emergency department in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
JO  - Public health action
A1  - Getachew, S.
A1  - Ali, E.
A1  - Tayler-Smith, K.
A1  - Hedt-Gauthier, B.
A1  - Silkondez, W.
A1  - Abebe, D.
A1  - Deressa, W.
A1  - Enquessilase, F.
A1  - Edwards, J. K.
SP  - 66
EP  - 71
VL  - 6
IS  - 2
N2  - Setting: The emergency department (ED) of Zewditu Memorial Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. <br><br>OBJECTIVE: To document the proportion, trend, characteristics and outcomes of road traffic injury (RTI) related ED admissions (15 years) between 2014 and 2015. <br><br>DESIGN: A retrospective, cross-sectional study using routinely collected ED data. <br><br>RESULTS: Of 10 007 ED admissions, 779 (8%) were RTI cases; this proportion peaked in the month of January (11%). Medical records were available for 522 (67%) of these RTI cases. The median age was 28 years and 69% were males. The majority were pedestrians (69%) injured by an automobile (78%). On triage, 32% were classified as needing urgent/immediate intervention. Head injuries (20%) were the second most common injury after lower limb injuries (36%). ED outcomes were as follows: discharged (68%), hospitalised (17%), referred (17%) and died (1%). Among the 78 hospitalised cases, respectively 62% and 16% were admitted to the surgical and orthopaedic departments. Of 146 RTI cases with head injuries, 25% were hospitalised, of whom 82% were admitted to the surgical department. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Our findings can guide policy makers in referral hospitals in improving the planning of hospital resources and the prioritisation of public health needs linked to further urban development. A comprehensive plan to prevent RTIs, particularly among pedestrians in Addis Ababa, is urgently needed.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 2220-8372
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.5588/pha.15.0082
ID  - ref1
ER  -