The SAFE paediatric anaesthesia course significantly increased participants' knowledge scores from 37.5 to 43.2 (p < 0.0001) and skills scores from 5.7 to 8.0 (p < 0.0001).
Does the SAFE paediatric anaesthesia course improve knowledge and skills among anaesthesia providers in East and Central Africa?
The SAFE paediatric anaesthesia course is an effective educational intervention that significantly improves and maintains knowledge and skills among practitioners in resource-limited settings.
Absolute Event Rate: 43.2% vs 37.5%
p-value: p=< 0.0001
paediatric anaesthesia course was developed to address the specific skills and knowledge required in this field. We undertook a project to expand this course across five East and Central African countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Uganda and Zambia) and train local faculty. This study reports the outcomes from course evaluation data, exploring the impact on knowledge, skills and behaviour change in participants. Eleven courses were conducted in a 15-month period, with 381 participants attending. Fifty-nine new faculty members were trained. Knowledge scores (0-50 scale) increased significantly from mean (SD) 37.5 (4.7) pre-course to 43.2 (3.5) post-course (p < 0.0001). Skills scores (0-10 scale) increased significantly from 5.7 (2.0) pre-course to 8.0 (1.5) post-course (p < 0.0001). One hundred and twenty-six participants in Malawi, Uganda and Zambia were visited in their workplace 3-6 months later. Knowledge and skills were maintained at follow-up, with scores of 41.5 (5.0) and 8.3 (1.4), respectively (p < 0.0001 compared with pre-course scores). Content analysis from interviews with these participants highlighted positive behaviour changes in the areas of preparation, peri-operative care, resuscitation, management of the sick child, communication and teaching. This study indicates that the SAFE paediatric anaesthesia course is an effective way to deliver training, and could be used to help strengthen emergency and essential surgical care for children as a component of universal health coverage.
Boyd et al. (Sat,) conducted a other in Healthcare workers requiring paediatric anaesthesia training (n=381). Safer Anaesthesia from Education (SAFE) paediatric anaesthesia course vs. Pre-course baseline was evaluated on Knowledge scores (0-50 scale) (p=< 0.0001). The SAFE paediatric anaesthesia course significantly increased participants' knowledge scores from 37.5 to 43.2 (p < 0.0001) and skills scores from 5.7 to 8.0 (p < 0.0001).