Ms Yvonne Singer
Abstract:
In recent decades, research and advances in treatment have contributed to significant improvements to burn care, and the quality of life following injury. Nevertheless, significant evidence gaps and high variations in clinical practice remain; the effects of which are largely unknown. The Burn Registry of Australia and New Zealand (BRANZ) collects data on patients admitted to all 17 Australian and New Zealand specialist burns units regarding burn injury, pre-existing conditions, clinical quality indicators, and in-hospital outcomes. As such, the BRANZ is an ideal platform to close knowledge gaps and inform best practices.
A successful 2017 HCF Research Grant has provided the opportunity to use the BRANZ data to quantify practice variation and establish if, and how this variation impacts patient outcomes. This important piece of work sets the standard for the future, and will drive quality improvement initiatives and the development of best practice guidelines, which have great potential to improve the quality of burn care and patient outcomes in the region.
This project is relevant to all Australian and New Zealand burn units and clinicians, whose commitment and collaboration have contributed significantly to the substantial successes of BRANZ thus far, and is reliant on them in the future. Stage one of this multi-centre study is currently underway. This presentation will summarise key findings from Stage one data analysis, discuss its implications, and lay out a plan for the future regarding the use of BRANZ data and the binational Burn Quality Improvement Program as quantitative bases to drive improvements in burn care and patient outcomes.