Emergency care capabilities in the Kingdom of Swaziland, Africa

Emergency care is available in many forms in Swaziland, and to our knowledge there has never been a systematic study of emergency centres (ECs) in the country. The purpose of this study was to describe the characteristics, resources and capacity of emergency centres in the Kingdom.

The National Emergency Department Inventory (NEDI)-International survey instrument (www.emnet-nedi.org) was used to survey all Swaziland ECs accessible to the general public 24/7. EC staff were asked about calendar year 2014. Data were entered directly into Lime Survey, a free, web-based, open-source survey application. Responses were analysed using descriptive statistics, including proportions and medians with interquartile ranges (IQR).

Sixteen of 17 ECs participated (94% response rate). Participating ECs were either in hospitals (69%) or health centres (31%). ECs had a median of 53,399 visits per year (IQR 15,000-97,895). Fourteen (88%) ECs had a contiguous layout, and the other two (12%) were non-contiguous. Overall, eight (53%) had access to cardiac monitors and 11 (69%) had a 24/7 clinical laboratory available. Only 1 (6%) EC had a dedicated CT scanner, while 2 (13%) others had limited access through their hospital. The typical EC length-of-stay was between 1 and 6 h (44%). The most commonly available specialists were general surgeons, with 9 (56%) ECs having them available for in-person consultation. No ECs had a plastic surgeon or psychiatrist available. Overall, 75% of ECs reported running at overcapacity.

Swaziland ECs were predominantly contiguous and running at overcapacity, with high patient volumes and limited resources. The limited access to technology and specialists are major challenges. We believe that these data support greater resource allocation by the Swaziland government to the emergency care sector.