Injury patterns, demographics, and post-treatment outcomes at Volta regional hospital, 2021-2025

Injuries are a major public health concern worldwide, contributing significantly to morbidity, mortality, and disability across all age groups. They arise from diverse causes, including home accidents, road traffic crashes, occupational hazards, animal bites, burns, and interpersonal violence.

This study examined the distribution and temporal trends of injuries, the socio-demographic characteristics of injured patients, and the treatment outcomes of injury-related admissions at the Volta Regional Hospital between 2021 and 2025.

A retrospective descriptive study was conducted using hospital records. Data on patient age, sex, education, occupation, injury types, and treatment outcomes were extracted and presented in frequencies and percentages. Data was cleaned and analyzed using Stata version 17.

The results show that over the 5 years, home injuries were the leading cause of morbidity (68.8%-71.1% in the early years), Dog bites (up to 17.9%), burns (up to 11.6%), and snake bites (up to 3.9%) contributed moderately, while other causes remained below 5%. Among 449 patients for injury patients, most were male (72.5%), adults (37.2%), and had JHS/Middle School education (39.7%). Artisans constituted the largest occupational group (40.1%). Regarding outcomes, 85.3% were discharged, 10.5% transferred, 2.5% absconded, and 1.8% died.

This study showed that injuries were more common among males and adults, with fractures, lacerations, and other trauma-related injuries accounting for most admissions at the Volta Regional Hospital between 2021 and 2025. Most patients were successfully discharged following treatment, although some required referral, absconded, or died. These findings highlight the need to strengthen injury prevention measures, trauma care services, and rehabilitation programs to improve patient outcomes and reduce the burden of injuries in the region.