Retrospective Analysis of Role II Military Hospital Emergency Department Admissions in Operation Enduring Freedom of Afghanistan

Abstract

Background: The North Atlantic treaty organization (NATO)-led international security and assistance force (ISAF) conducted training, development, and humanitarian activities in addition to security operations during its 13 years in Afghanistan. Objectives: The aim of this study was to present the emergency department experiences of Kabul Ataturk Role II military hospital. Materials and Methods: We performed a retrospective observational study of emergency department admissions at Kabul Ataturk Role II Military hospital during a 12-month period from August 2012 through July 2013. Results: During the 12-month study period, 4348 patients were admitted to our emergency department. Admissions were evaluated as two groups according to trauma exposure of the patients and we detected that the Afghan civilian group had a higher number of admissions with stab wounds and burn injuries compared to the other groups. Moreover, our study results presents higher rates of surgical, orthopedic, and mixed treatments on the Afghan civilian group compared with other groups of patients. Conclusions: Humanitarian care facilities, including medical assistance, are still vital for the Afghan society. Participation of women and/or Muslim caregivers may enhance accessibility, particularly for Afghan women. We believe that the availability of emergency medicine facilities in a hospital setting at a reachable location for Afghan civilians is an effective and profitable choice for medical services. In terms of emergency medicine, the department should be prepared for orthopedic traumas, combat injuries including mine and gunshot wounds, and burn injuries.