Abstract:
Background There is a pressing need for emergency
care (EC) training in low-resource settings. We assessed
the feasibility and acceptability of training frontline
healthcare providers in emergency care with the World
Health Organization (WHO)-International Committee
of the Red Cross (ICRC) Basic Emergency Care (BEC)
Course using a training-of-trainers (ToT) model with local
providers.
Methods Quasiexperimental pretest and post-test
study of an educational intervention at four first-level
district hospitals in Tanzania and Uganda conducted in
March and April of 2017. A 2-day ToT course was held
in both Tanzania and Uganda. These were immediately
followed by a 5-day BEC Course, taught by the newly
trained trainers, at two hospitals in each country. Both
prior to and immediately following each training,
participants took assessments on EC knowledge and
rated their confidence level in using a variety of EC skills
to treat patients. Qualitative feedback from participants
was collected and summarised.
Results Fifty-nine participants completed the four BEC
Courses. All participants were current healthcare workers
at the selected hospitals. An additional 10 participants
completed a ToT course. EC knowledge scores were
significantly higher for participants immediately following
the training compared with their scores just prior to the
training when assessed across all study sites (Z=6.2p<0.001). Across all study sites, mean EC confidence
ratings increased by 0.74 points on a 4-point Likert
scale (95% CI 0.63 to 0.84, p<0.001). Main qualitative
feedback included: positive reception of the sessions,
especially hands-on skills; request for additional BEC
trainings; request for obstetric topics; and need for more
allotted training time.
Conclusions Implementation of the WHO-ICRC
BEC Course by locally trained providers was feasible,
acceptable and well received at four sites in East Africa.
Participation in the training course was associated with
a significant increase in EC knowledge and confidence
at all four study sites. The BEC is a low-cost intervention
that can improve EC knowledge and skill confide
