Browsing by Author "Lahri, S."

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    Case mix of patients managed in the resuscitation area of a district-level public hospital in Cape Town
    (Elsevier, 2017-03) Hunter, L. D.; Lahri, S.; Van Hoving, D. J.
    Introduction: At the core of the district health system is the emergency centre, for many the entry point into the healthcare system. Limited data is available on the patient population served by district-level emergency centres in South Africa. The objective of this study is to describe the case mix of adult patients managed in the resuscitation unit of a district-level hospital in the Western Cape. Methods: A six-month prospective observational study was conducted in the resuscitation unit of Khayelitsha Hospital. Data were collected by clinicians in the unit by means of a Smartphone application on their own devices. Variables collected included patient demographics, patient acuity, patient comorbidities, diagnosis made in the unit, interventions received, length of stay, and disposition. Summary statistics were used to describe all variables. Results: A total of 2324 patient admissions were analysed. The mean age was 36.9 years with a male predominance (n = 1367, 58.8%). Most patients were triaged into high-acuity categories (n = 1626, 70%). HIV infection was the most common comorbidity (n = 530, 22.8%). Acute medical (n = 1181, 50.8%) and trauma-related patients (n = 928, 39.9%) dominated the cohort. The median length of stay was 195 min and 502 (21.6%) patients were transferred to higher levels of care. There were 74 (3.2%) deaths. Conclusion: This study yields novel epidemiological data of emergency care in a district-level emergency centre. It highlights the burden of trauma and acute medical emergencies at the district level and can be used as a foundation for further research to provide targeted and effective healthcare to all citizens.
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    A comparison of trauma scoring systems for trauma-related injuries presenting to a district-level urban public hospital in Western Cape, South Africa
    (Medpharm, 2020-03) Mukonkole, S. N.; Hunter, L.; Moller, A.; Mccaul, M.; Lahri, S.; Van Hoving, D. J.
    BACKGROUND: Trauma is a major public health issue and has an extensive burden on the health system in South Africa. Many trauma scoring systems have been developed to estimate trauma severity and predict mortality. The prediction of mortality between different trauma scoring systems have not been compared at district-level health facilities in South Africa. The objective was to compare four trauma scoring systems (injury severity score (ISS), revised trauma score (RTS), Kampala trauma score (KTS), trauma and injury severity score (TRISS)) in predicting mortality in trauma-related patients presenting to a district-level hospital in Cape Town METHODS: A retrospective analysis of all trauma patients managed in the resuscitation unit of Khayelitsha Hospital during a six-month period. Logistic regression was done, and empirical cut of points used to maximise sensitivity and specificity on receiver operating characteristic curves. The outcome was all-cause in-hospital mortality RESULTS: In total, 868 participants were analysed after 50 were excluded due to missing data. The mean (± SD) age was 28±11 years, 726 (83.6%) were males, and penetrating injuries (n = 492,56.6%) dominated. The mortality rate was 5.2% (n = 45). TRISS was the best mortality predictor (c-statistic 0.93, sensitivity 90%, specificity 87%). All scoring systems had overlapping confidence intervals CONCLUSION: TRISS, ISS, RTS and KTS performed equivocally in predicting mortality in trauma-related patients managed at a district-level facility. The appropriate scoring system should be the simplest one which can be practically implemented and will likely differ between facilities
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    HIV-positive patients in the intensive care unit
    (Health and Medical Publishing Group, 2017) Parker, A.; Lahri, S.; Taljaard, J. J.; Koegelenberg, C. F. N.
    No abstract available.
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    Leadership and early strategic response to the SARS-CoV- 2 pandemic at a COVID-19 designated hospital in South Africa
    (Health & Medical Publishing Group, 2020-04-23) Parker, A.; Karamchand, S.; Schrueder, N.; Lahri, S.; Rabie, H.; Aucamp, A.; Abrahams, R.; Ciapparelli, P.; Erasmus, D. S.; Cotton, M. F.; Lalla, U.; Leisegang, Rory; Meintjes, J.; Mistry, R.; Moosa, M. R.; Mowlana, A.; Koegelenberg, C. F. N.; Prozesky, H.; Smith, W.; Van Schalkwyk, M.; Taljaard, J. J.
    While many countries are preparing to face the COVID-19 pandemic, the reported cases in Africa remain low. With a high burden of both communicable and non-communicable disease and a resource-constrained public healthcare system, sub-Saharan Africa is preparing for the coming crisis as best it can. We describe our early response as a designated COVID-19 provincial hospital in Cape Town, South Africa (SA).While the first cases reported were related to international travel, at the time of writing there was evidence of early community spread. The SA government announced a countrywide lockdown from midnight 26 March 2020 to midnight 30 April 2020 to stem the pandemic and save lives. However, many questions remain on how the COVID-19 threat will unfold in SA, given the significant informal sector overcrowding and poverty in our communities. There is no doubt that leadership and teamwork at all levels is critical in influencing outcomes.