Availability of mobile phones for discharge follow-up of pediatric Emergency Department patients in western Kenya.

Darlene R House,Philip Cheptinga,Daniel E Rusyniak

doi:10.7717/peerj.790

Darlene R House, Philip Cheptinga + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.790

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Abstract

Objective. Mobile phones have been successfully used for Emergency Department (ED) patient follow-up in developed countries. Mobile phones are widely available in developing countries and may offer a similar potential for follow-up and continued care of ED patients in low and middle-income countries. The goal of this study was to determine the percentage of families with mobile phones presenting to a pediatric ED in western Kenya and rate of response to a follow-up phone call after discharge.Methods. A prospective, cross-sectional observational study of children presenting to the emergency department of a government referral hospital in Eldoret, Kenya was performed. Documentation of mobile phone access, including phone number, was recorded. If families had access, consent was obtained and families were contacted 7 days after discharge for follow-up.Results. Of 788 families, 704 (89.3%) had mobile phone access. Of those families discharged from the ED, successful follow-up was made in 83.6% of cases.Conclusions. Mobile phones are an available technology for follow-up of patients discharged from a pediatric emergency department in resource-limited western Kenya.

Highlights

Mobile phones have been successfully used for Emergency Department (ED) patient follow-up
Study design A prospective, cross-sectional observational study of children presenting to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya was performed between the months of February and April 2013
A total of 704 (89.3%) families had mobile phone access; of those, 659 families were eligible for the study

Summary

Introduction

Mobile phones have been successfully used for Emergency Department (ED) patient follow-up. They have been used to continue discharge education, to evaluate treatment compliance, to identify and intervene when patients are clinically worsening, to assess patient satisfaction, and to improve upon patient experiences (Arora et al, 2014; Guss, Leland & Castillo, 2013; Jones et al, 1988; Lee, 2004; Patel & Vinson, 2013). The use of phones for patient follow-up have been shown to improve the care of patients discharged from the ED (Arora et al, 2014; Chande & Exum, 1994; Jones et al, 1988)

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Results

Conclusion