COMPUTER-ASSISTED TRAUMA MANAGEMENT IN RURAL COMMUNITIES

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Trauma is one of the leading causes of death and disability in rural communities. Many of these fatalities and disabilities could be avoided if significant injuries were detected earlier or if there were improvements in resuscitation and stabilization of the injured patients. We are proposing to develop a microcomputer-based program, specifically an expert system, to aid rural health-care professionals in the diagnosis, treatment, stabilization, and triage of trauma victims. Such a program could serve as an educational tool as well as stimulating recall and acting as a second opinion during actual medical emergencies. During Phase I, the proposed program will be developed in four stages: a literature search, interviews with six health-care professionals in two rural clinics and two regional trauma centers, development of an expert-system trauma advisor for head injuries based on these interviews and evaluation of this program with the same healthcare professionals. In Phase II all types of trauma will be considered using consultants from a greater diversity of rural communities. This type of program is an innovative approach to training and skill maintenance for those who work in rural medical clinics and also offers these professionals a ready reference during actual medical emergencies.