Mapping the gap: Misalignment between emergency care research and consensus priorities in the Western Cape

The Western Cape (WC) province of South Africa is one of the highest emergency care (EC) research-producing regions in Africa. In 2021, a consensus exercise with key stakeholders established 26 EC research priorities. This study aimed to confirm evidence gaps in relation to the priorities and assess the alignment between frontline knowledge needs and research output within the WC EC community.

We developed an evidence map of all EC research published from the WC between January 2017 and December 2021 to describe the alignment of each publication with any previously established priority. Additional data were extracted from all studies that addressed one or more of these priorities.

A total of 246 EC publications were identified, with 24% (n = 60) addressing one or more of the 26 established priorities, while five priorities remained unaddressed. Priority-aligned papers appeared in 36 journals, of which 16% (n = 41), including seven priority-aligned papers, were behind a pay wall. Most priority-aligned studies were observational (48%) or qualitative (23%), with only two systematic reviews and no experimental studies.

Less than a quarter of recent EC research publications from the WC addressed established consensus priorities, confirming the existence of consensus evidence gaps and suggesting potential misalignment between research output and community-identified needs.

This study provides an evidence-based assessment of how well EC research in the WC reflects community-established priorities. The findings highlight the need for stronger alignment between research production and frontline knowledge needs to maximise impact and reduce research waste.