International pediatric emergency care: establishment of a new specialty in a developing country.

Background: Emergency medicine is being established as a unique and independent specialty throughout the world. Pediatric emergency medicine, however, is a relatively new subspecialty in the United States and a newer subspecialty in the rest of the world. In most of Europe and Asia, this specialty has yet to be developed.

Objective: To analyze the establishment of a new pediatric emergency care system in a developing country and identify areas of need and potential collaboration.

Setting: Pristina University Hospital, the main academic medical center in Kosovo, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

Methods: Data were collected using convenience sample surveys of all emergency visits in 2001, hospital admissions, health department statistics, and interviews with government officials and healthcare providers.

Results: Emergency care of children in Kosovo is provided by three parallel 24-hour clinic systems. During 2001, approximately 31,000 children sought emergency care (10,000 in the pediatric clinic, 5000 in an emergency facility, and 16,000 in the infectious disease clinic). There was no coordination or cooperation between these different facilities. No attempt was made to diagnose acute otitis media or urinary tract infection in young children. No records were kept. No physician in this study had pediatric emergency medicine and/or emergency medicine training. Prehospital providers had limited equipment and training.

Conclusions: Hospital clinic systems in this environment provide high-volume and often a high level of acute care. Barriers to improved care include limited specialized training, lack of coordination between departments, and failure to establish a medical records system.