Abstract
BackgroundShort-term medical missions (STMMs) are a well-established means of providing health care to the developing world. Despite over 250 million dollars and thousands of volunteer hours dedicated to STMMs, there is a lack of standardized evaluation to assess patient safety, quality control, and mission impact. The objective of this project is to design and implement an assessment tool that defines objective parameters of quality of care as identified by STMMs.MethodsThe study was conducted in 3 phases: 1) Base-need analysis to determine factors critical to the quality of STMMs, 2) Design of 5 surveys for mission personnel and patients to enable 360-degree evaluation based on factors from phase 1, and 3) Field testing of the surveys with 5 STMMs.ResultsAn evaluation tool was created assessing 6 major and 30 minor factors identified as important to the quality of STMMs. 5 mission directors, 43 personnel, 10 local hosts, and 55 patients completed the surveys. Of the 6 major measures of quality, missions performed best in Cost (mean score 86%), and Impact (84%). The poorest performance was in Education (64%). Efficiency, Sustainability, and Preparedness showed mean scores of 76%, 77%, and 73%, respectively.ConclusionOur study provides a novel standardized tool for STMM evaluation. Use of the assessment instrument identified areas of strength and weakness of a particular mission, and delineated general trends in performance compared to other STMMs. We anticipate that the use of this tool may improve the quality of care provided by missions, and stimulate solution-sharing and scholarly discussion among missions.
Highlights
Short-term medical missions (STMMs) are a well-established means of providing health care to the developing world
short-term medical missions (STMM) are an important component of global healthcare and a rapidly growing sector that accounts for millions of dollars of public and private funds
No standardized assessment tool has been developed to assess the quality of STMMs
Summary
Short-term medical missions (STMMs) are a well-established means of providing health care to the developing world. Despite over 250 million dollars and thousands of volunteer hours dedicated to STMMs, there is a lack of standardized evaluation to assess patient safety, quality control, and mission impact The objective of this project is to design and implement an assessment tool that defines objective parameters of quality of care as identified by STMMs. In recent years, short-term medical missions (STMMs) have become a well-established vehicle for extending the reach of health care professionals to the developing world. BMC Health Services Research 2008, 8:121 http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6963/8/121 special study or of undertaking a special study of a shortterm duration [2] This broad definition encompasses a wide range of services, ranging from surgical missions providing craniofacial reconstruction or cataract extraction [3,4] to medical and/or pediatric missions providing care for acute illness and chronic disease [5]. Paucity of follow-up data, poor relations with the local health care system, and lack of sustainability can challenge the good intentions of missions
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