| dc.description.abstract | Background:
According to WHO (2014), burn injuries are a major problem to health care worldwide. Ninety five per cent of all burns cases occur in LMICs (WHO, 2009). Most burn injuries lead to prolonged and expensive hospital stays (WHO, 2009). In Uganda, burn injuries account for 11% of all childhood injuries (Nakitto&Lett, 2010). Burns Unit at Mulago National Referral Hospital is the only specialised burns care unit in the country. However, it was observed that patients in this unit spends unusually longer time in admission than the WHO (2015) recommended time and it was not clear what could be the cause of prolonged hospitalisation for these patients hence the aim of this research.
Objectives of the study:
The objective of this study was to determine the predictors of length of hospital stay among burns patients in Mulago National Referral Hospital Burns Care Unit Kampala from July, 2014 to June, 2015. Methodology:
A retrospective study design was used. A review of medical records of patients discharged from the Burns Care Unit from July, 2014 to June, 2015 was done and data extraction form was used to collect data from patients’ files.
Results:
More than half (57.1%) of the patients in the study were male with children 5 years and below constituting 55.2%. The majority of patients (86.2%) got burnt at home. The average length of stay for patients was 24.3 days (±22.1 days). The degree/ depth of burns (OR=44.22, 95% CI =10.86-180.08, P=0.000) was the single most significant predictor of length of stay of patients with burns at multivariate analysis level.
Conclusion:
Conclusion and recommendations: Depth of burns was the major predictor of length of stay among burns patients admitted at Mulago National referral Hospital Burns Unit and therefore need for early surgical intervention to promote faster healing and reduce length of stay among patients with burn. | en_US |
