title: Understanding burn injuries in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children: protocol for a prospective cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Although Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in Australia have higher risk of burns compared with non-Aboriginal children, their access to burn care, particularly postdischarge care, is poorly understood, including the impact of care on functional outcomes. The objective of this study is to describe the burden of burns, access to care and functional outcomes in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in Australia, and develop appropriate models of care.
  
  
  METHODS
  All Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged under 16 years of age (and their families) presenting with a burn to a tertiary paediatric burn unit in 4 Australian States (New South Wales (NSW), Queensland, Northern Territory (NT), South Australia (SA)) will be invited to participate. Participants and carers will complete a baseline questionnaire; follow-ups will be completed at 3, 6, 12 and 24 months. Data collected will include sociodemographic information; out of pocket costs; functional outcome; and measures of pain, itch and scarring. Health-related quality of life will be measured using the PedsQL, and impact of injury using the family impact scale. Clinical data and treatment will also be recorded. Around 225 participants will be recruited allowing complete data on around 130 children. Qualitative data collected by in-depth interviews with families, healthcare providers and policymakers will explore the impact of burn injury and outcomes on family life, needs of patients and barriers to healthcare; interviews with families will be conducted by experienced Aboriginal research staff using Indigenous methodologies. Health systems mapping will describe the provision of care.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  The study has been approved by ethics committees in NSW, SA, NT and Queensland. Study results will be distributed to community members by study newsletters, meetings and via the website; to policymakers and clinicians via policy fora, presentations and publication in peer-reviewed journals.
authors.affiliation: Injury Division, The George Institute for Global Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia School of Midwifery and Nursing, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Rebecca Q
authors.initials: RQ
authors.lastname: Ivers
authors.affiliation: Injury Division, The George Institute for Global Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia Poche Centre for Indigenous Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hunter
authors.affiliation: Australian Health Services Research Institute, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Kathleen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Clapham
authors.affiliation: Injury Division, The George Institute for Global Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Julieann
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Coombes
authors.affiliation: School of Midwifery and Nursing, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fraser
authors.affiliation: Injury Division, The George Institute for Global Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Serigne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lo
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Belinda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gabbe
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, Curtin University, Bentley, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Delia
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hendrie
authors.affiliation: National Critical Care & Trauma Response Centre, Royal Darwin Hospital, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Read
authors.affiliation: Australian Centre for Children's Burns and Trauma Research, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Roy
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kimble
authors.affiliation: Paediatric Burn Unit, Women's and Children's Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sparnon
authors.affiliation: Australian Centre for Children's Burns and Trauma Research, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Kellie
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Stockton
authors.affiliation: National Critical Care & Trauma Response Centre, Royal Darwin Hospital, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.
authors.forename: Renee
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Simpson
authors.affiliation: Paediatric Burn Unit, Women's and Children's Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Quinn
authors.affiliation: Aboriginal Health, Northern and Central Adelaide Local Health Networks, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Kurt
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Towers
authors.affiliation: Department of Burns & Plastic Surgery, Welsh Centre for Burns & Plastic Surgery, Swansea, UK.
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Potokar
authors.affiliation: Poche Centre for Indigenous Health and Wellbeing, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Tamara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mackean
authors.affiliation: School of Midwifery and Nursing, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Julian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Grant
authors.affiliation: Farr Institute, Swansea University Medical School, Wales, UK.
authors.forename: Ronan A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Lyons
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Lindsey
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Department of Aboriginal Health, Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eades
authors.affiliation: Australian Health Services Research Institute, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Daniels
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia Discipline of Paediatrics and Child Health, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Andrew J A
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Holland
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001315:Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D002056:Burns / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000628:therapy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006303:Health Services, Indigenous; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D000095283:Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
keywords: ACCIDENT & EMERGENCY MEDICINE; PLASTIC & RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGERY