Introduction of an electronic debrief and governance tool in prehospital care

The Tayside Trauma Team is a mobile medical team that is deployed from Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, UK at the request of the ambulance service.

To describe the implementation of a formal debrief and governance tool to ensure the ongoing provision of a high-quality prehospital service.

A questionnaire was devised to examine key issues relating to clinical governance and distributed to all members of staff involved in the provision of prehospital care.

A number of areas of concern were revealed, including a lack of understanding on how to report critical incidents occurring in this field and a low level of opportunity to fully discuss events and vocalise concerns. These areas of concern were used to formulate an electronic debrief tool to be available to staff after each incident attended. Reports were considered and actioned and data collected for audit purposes and to provide a framework for discussion at monthly morbidity and mortality meetings.

Any patient requiring the services of a healthcare professional in the prehospital setting has a right to expect the same level of quality of care that they would receive within the hospital. The development of a debrief tool will achieve ongoing quality of care in this specialised area of healthcare.