Impact of a Dedicated Obstetric and Neonatal Transport Service
Author Information
Author(s): Shaheem De Vries, Lee A Wallis, David Maritz
Primary Institution: University of Cape Town and Stellenbosch University
Hypothesis
The establishment of a dedicated obstetric and neonatal flying squad will improve transport times in a major metropolitan area.
Conclusion
The introduction of the Flying Squad programme has resulted in significant improvement in the transit times of both neonatal and obstetric patients.
Supporting Evidence
- Flying Squad dispatch performance improved from 11.7% to 46.6% of all incidents dispatched within 4 min.
- Response time performance at the 15-min threshold did not demonstrate a statistically significant improvement.
- The introduction of the Flying Squad programme resulted in a reduction in total pre-hospital time from 177 to 128 min.
Takeaway
A special team was created to help pregnant women and newborns get to the hospital faster, and it worked really well.
Methodology
A retrospective review of all EMS obstetric and neonatal Flying Squad calls during two separate 1-year periods: 2005 and 2008.
Potential Biases
Potential bias from the investigator in a retrospective analysis.
Limitations
The absence of patient outcome measures limits the conclusions that can be made about the quality of care provided.
Participant Demographics
The study involved patients requiring obstetric and neonatal transport in Cape Town, South Africa.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p < 0.0001
Statistical Significance
p < 0.0001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Want to read the original?
Access the complete publication on the publisher's website