Degree
Master of Science
Program
Surgery
Supervisor
Neil Parry
Abstract
Missed injuries in trauma patients are a significant source of preventable morbidity. The tertiary survey is a head-to-toe physical exam performed within 24 hours of admission to identify any injuries which may have been missed during initial assessment and resuscitation. The Physician Assist Trauma Software (PATS) is an electronic program designed to guide users through a thorough tertiary survey and document the results. This thesis project was designed to study the impact of implementing this novel mobile device based electronic tertiary survey program on missed injuries. The first phase of this study involved quantifying and characterizing the missed injury rate at two distinct pilot sites. The second phase compared missed injury rates before and after implementation of the PATS program. Completion rates before and after implementation were also compared as a measure of feasibility. The implementation of the PATS program significantly decreased missed injury rates and improved documentation compliance at both sites. The third phase focused on user-level feasibility by surveying the pre- and post-PATS practitioners responsible for completing the tertiary survey. Overall, users found the PATS program useful, time-saving, and effective. The PATS program appears to be an effective and feasible way to reduce missed injuries and improve documentation in trauma.
Recommended Citation
Moffat, Bradley S., "Introduction of a Mobile Device Based Tertiary Survey Application Reduces Missed Injuries: A Multi-Center Prospective Study" (2014). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 2392.
https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/2392
Signed exam certificate