Abstract
Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital is situated in the South Western part of Johannesburg and is one of the largest acute hospitals in the world, serving a population of more than 3.5 million people. The hospital has a total of 2964 beds of which 232 beds are orthopaedic, including paediatric orthopaedics. The orthopaedic division at this tertiary level hospital comprises six units, namely; Upper Limb Trauma, Lower Limb Trauma, Spine Unit, Paediatric Orthopaedics, Sports and General Orthopaedics, and Arthroplasty/Tumour & Sepsis Unit.
This review seeks to elicit the total number of patients seen with orthopaedic conditions and the spectrum thereof in and around Soweto. This is the first review of its kind done at The Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, Orthopaedic division, to date.
Purpose:
The purpose of this audit is to identify the orthopaedic related health events that occur within the Soweto population being serviced by the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, and in doing so be used as a tool to improve orthopaedic related patient care and outcomes in public health services.
Method:
A retrospective review was conducted for a period of one year. This included all orthopaedic admissions, theatre cases performed, and outpatient assessments. Statistics were taken from registers incorporating OPD, Wards, Casualty and theatre.
Results of the study:
For the period of the review there were more than 3000 orthopaedic admissions from the emergency unit. Theatre records show that approximately 4000 orthopaedic theatre cases were performed at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital. This consisted of more than 75 different types of operative procedures. The majority were hand procedures and the bulk of elective procedures were for total hip replacements. There were more than 28000 patients reviewed at the outpatients department for the year being reviewed.
Conclusion:
This analysis outlines the spectrum of orthopaedics seen at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, ranging from admissions to theatre cases performed. The result of which can be used to improve the quality of patient care, reduce elective procedure waiting lists, as well as be used as a tool for future research.
