title: Early benefits of improved burn-care capability at Kalafong Hospital.
abstract: The creation of an improved burn-care capability was a long-awaited dream at Kalafong Hospital, one of the two academic (tertiary referral) hospitals of the University of Pretoria. When this recently became a reality, a prospective analysis of cost-effective burn care was initiated. For patients with burns of less than 10% body surface area (BSA), hospital stay (healing time) was shortened from a mean of 4.1 d/% BSA burnt to 2.7 d/% BSA burnt (34% reduction; P = 0.01). For patients with burns greater than 10% BSA, hospital stay (healing time) decreased from 2.3 d/% BSA burnt to 1.4 d/% BSA burnt (39% reduction; P = 0.0095). The overall mortality rate declined from 16.2% to 11.2% over the 24-month period. Patients with the largest deep dermal burn injury to survive in our hospital improved from 35% BSA to 60%. It is concluded that the creation of better burn care facilities at our hospital has shortened the hospital stay of survivors by a mean of 35% and decreased the mortality rate by 30%. Hospital authorities should take note of the fact that better facilities not only improve cost-effective patient care but also survival figures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University of Pretoria.
authors.forename: P C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Bauling
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Kruger
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: van der Vyver
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: van Rooyen
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lombard
mesh_terms: D002053:Burn Units / Q000592:standards*; D002056:Burns / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D013019:South Africa