Lights, camera, action… spotlight on trauma video review: an underutilized means of quality improvement and education.

Background: Trauma video review (TVR) is an effective method of quality improvement and education. The objective of this study was to determine TVR practices in the United States and use of TVR for quality improvement and education.

Methods: Adult and pediatric trauma centers identified by the American College of Surgeons (n = 102) and the National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions (n = 24) were surveyed by telephone. Surveys included questions regarding program demographics, residency information, and past/present TVR practices.

Results: One hundred eight trauma centers (86%) were contacted, and 99% (107/108) completed surveys. Of the surveyed centers, 34% never used TVR; 37% previously used TVR and had discontinued at the time of the survey, with most reporting legal/privacy concerns; 20% were currently using TVR; and 9% were planning to use TVR in the future. Nineteen percent (14/73) of general trauma centers are using or planning to use TVR compared with 50% (17/34) of pediatric centers (P = 0.001). One hundred percent of current TVR programs report that TVR improves the trauma resuscitation process.Most pediatric emergency medicine (87%), emergency medicine (89%), and surgery (97%) trainees participate in trauma resuscitation at trauma centers. Fifty-two percent of centers using TVR report trainee attendance at TVR process/conference; 38% specifically use TVR for resident education.

Conclusions: All current TVR programs report that it improves their trauma processes. More pediatric trauma centers report planning future TVR programs, but the implication of such plans remains unclear. Opportunities exist for expanded use of TVR for resident education.