Prehospital times and outcomes of patients transported using an ambulance trauma transport protocol: A data linkage analysis from New South Wales Australia.

Introduction: Prehospital trauma systems are designed to ensure optimal survival from critical injuries by triaging and transporting such patients to the most appropriate hospital in a timely manner.

Objectives: We sought to evaluate whether prehospital time and location (metropolitan versus non-metropolitan) were associated with 30-day mortality in a cohort of patients transported by road ambulance using a trauma transport protocol.

Methods: Data linkage analysis of routinely collected ambulance and hospital data across all public hospitals in New South Wales (NSW). The data linkage cohort included adult patients (age ≥ 16years) transported by NSW Ambulance, where a T1 Major Trauma Transport Protocol was documented by paramedic crews and transported by road to a public hospital emergency department in NSW for two years between January 2019 and December 2020. The outcomes of interest were prehospital times (response time, scene time and transport time) and 30-day mortality due to injury.

Results: 9012 cases were identified who were transported to an emergency department with T1 protocol indication. Median prehospital transport times were longer in non-metropolitan road transports [n = 3,071, 98 min (71-126)] compared to metropolitan transports [n = 5,941, 65 min (53-80), p < 0.001]. There was no significant difference in 30-day mortality between the two groups (1.24% vs 1.65%, p = 0.13). In the subgroup of patients with abnormal vital signs, the only predictors of mortality were increasing age, presence of severe injury (OR 24.87, 95%CI 11.02, 56.15, p < 0.001), and arrival at a non-trauma facility (OR 3.01, 95%CI 1.26, 7.20, p < 0.05). Increasing transport times were not found to increase the odds of 30-day mortality.

Discussion: In the context of an inclusive trauma system and an established prehospital major trauma protocol, increasing prehospital transport times and scene location were not associated with increased mortality.