A Survey Of The Injured Patients In The Emergency Room Of A Semi-Urban Hospital In South Western Nigeria

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the injury pattern among trauma patients presenting at emergency room of the hospital, and highlight the outcome of such injuries. METHOD: It was a one-year prospective study between June 2001 to May, 2002. 2122 patients were seen at the emergency room, 652 (30.7%) were treated for traumatic injuries. The mean age was 34.6+ 13.6 (SD). The male to female ratio was 2.9:1. RESULTS: Road traffic accident was the commonest cause of injury occurring in 541 patients (83%). The predominant injury was laceration in 261 patients (39.6%), then fractures in 237 patients (36.3%). Among those with fractures, 203 (85.3%) were close and 34 (14.5%) were open with lower limb fractures predominating. Lacerations were sutured in 198 patients and the remanding 63 closed secondarily. Most fractures were managed with closed manipulative reduction and application of Plaster of Paris cast. 43 had internal fixation. 259 patients (39.7%) were discharged within 24 hours, 216 patients (33.2%) admitted to the wards for further investigations and treatment, 129 (19.8%) took their discharge against medical advice, 14 (2.1%) were referred to other centres and 34 died. The mortality rate was 5.2%. CONCLUSION: It was concluded that trauma related injuries affected the productive age group of our society. The establishment of organized trauma centre was recommended. Nig Jnl Orthopaedics & Trauma Vol.2(1) 2003: 11-1

Epidemiology of open tibia fractures in Nigeria

A total of 120 patients aged 4-80 years with open tibia fractures were studied. Majority were Gustilo and Anderson type II, 39.2% and type I, 30.8%. The treatment modality was above knee cast in 74.2% and external fixator in 25.8%. Gram negative organisms were the most common isolates in 39.1% of wound infection and delayed union were the most commonly observed complications. All the patients had passive anti-tetanus immunoprophylaxis and active immunization was commenced. “Correlation existed between wound infection and (i) Gustilo and Anderson grading (F -0.352, P0.001); (ii) Injury to Debridement time (F -0.304, P 0.004); (iii) Osteomyelitis (F 0.397, P 0.001); and (iv) Delayed union (F 0.353, P 0.017); and (v) Union time (F -0.350, P 0.011). Also between; (i) Injury to Debridement time and the distance from the accident scene to the hospital (F 0.464, P 0.001); (ii) The fracture pattern and the union time (F 0.353, P 0.001); and (iii) The presence of osteomyelitis and delayed union (F.382, P.001). Road traffic injuries remained the commonest etiological agents. Nigerian Journal of Surgical Sciences Vol.16(1) 2006: 1-

The high cost of healing and teaching: a cross-sectional survey of burnout among academic physicians in Nigeria

Abstract Background Globally, the medical and teaching professions are two major professions with the highest prevalence of burnout, and academic physicians bestride the two professions. This study investigated the prevalence and associated factors of burnout among academic physicians working in tertiary hospitals in Nigeria. Methodology This was a self-administered online survey. Burnout was measured using the Maslach Burnout Inventory for Educators (MBI-ES) on Google Form and sent to 256 academic physicians in tertiary hospitals across Nigeria using the WhatsApp broadcast feature. MBI-ES was categorized into two categories (Burnout and No Burnout), and binary logistic regression was used to test the influence of 13 predictors on the three dimensions of MBI-ES as well as MBI in its entirety. Findings A total of 155 academic physicians responded, resulting in a response rate of 60.5%. There were 121 (80.7%) males and 29 (19.3%) females (five cases respondents omitted this detail). Eighty-seven respondents exhibited moderate to high burnout in at least one of the dimensions of the MBI, translating to a prevalence rate of 57.7% in our study. Five variables, number of peer reviewed articles published, hours of weekly teaching, enjoyment of academic writing, apathy to teaching and religion were all significantly associated with burnout. Moderate to high emotional exhaustion was reported by 30.8% (45 respondents), moderate to high depersonalization by 5.5% (8 respondents),, and low to moderate personal accomplishment by 43.5% (67 respondents).Eight variables: religion, geopolitical zone of practice, enjoyment of academic writing, apathy toward teaching, university ownership, number of published peer-reviewed articles, salary, and supplementary income were significantly associated with emotional exhaustion, while the number of weeks spent teaching in a year and teaching hours/week were significantly associated with depersonalization and personal accomplishment, respectively. Age (OR 1.302, CI 1.080–1.570), Teaching hours/week (OR 0.924, CI 0.854–0.999), Salary (OR 0.996, CI 0.993-1.0), and supplementary salary (OR 0.996, CI 0.993–0.999) were found to significantly predict emotional exhaustion. Conclusion The study reveals a high prevalence of burnout (57.7%) among academic physicians in Nigeria, highlighting an urgent need for targeted interventions and policy changes. Given the significant role these professionals play in healthcare and medical education, immediate action is essential to address this issue. Future research should focus on evaluating the effectiveness of preventive measures and exploring the long-term impacts of burnout