OBJECTIVES: To describe the infrastructure and resources for pediatric emergency and critical care delivery in resource-limited settings worldwide. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey with survey items developed through literature review and revised following piloting. SETTING: The electronic survey was disseminated internationally in November 2019 via e-mail directories of pediatric intensive care societies and networks and using social media. PATIENTS: Healthcare providers who self-identified as working in resource-limited settings. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Results were summarized using descriptive statistics and resource availability was compared across World Bank country income groups. We received 328 responses (238 hospitals, 60 countries), predominantly in Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa (n = 161, 67.4%). Hospitals were in low-income (28, 11.7%), middle-income (166, 69.5%), and high-income (44, 18.4%) countries. Across 174 PICU and adult ICU admitting children, there were statistically significant differences in the proportion of hospitals reporting consistent resource availability (“often” or “always”) between country income groups (p < 0·05). Resources with limited availability in lower income countries included advanced ventilatory support, invasive and noninvasive monitoring, central venous access, renal replacement therapy, advanced imaging, microbiology, biochemistry, blood products, antibiotics, parenteral nutrition, and analgesic/sedative drugs. Seventy-seven ICUs (52.7%) were staffed 24/7 by a pediatric intensivist or anesthetist. The nurse-to-patient ratio was less than 1:2 in 71 ICUs (49.7%). CONCLUSIONS: Contemporary data demonstrate significant disparity in the availability of essential and advanced human and material resources for the care of critically ill children in resource-limited settings. Minimum standards for essential pediatric emergency and critical care in resource-limited settings are needed.

Published reviews of national physician strikes have shown a reduction in patient mortality. From 5 December 2016 until 14 March 2017, Kenyan physicians in the public sector went on strike leaving only private (not-for-profit and for-profit) hospitals able to offer physician care. We report on our experience at AIC-Kijabe Hospital, a not-for-profit, faith-based Kenyan hospital, before, during and after the 100-day strike was completed by examining patient admissions and deaths in the time periods before, during and after the strike. The volume of patients increased and exceeded the hospital’s ability to respond to needs. There were substantial increases in sick newborn admissions during this time frame and an additional ward was opened to respond to this need. Increased need occurred across all services but staffing and space limited ability to respond to increased demand. There were increases in deaths during the strike period across the paediatric medical, newborn, paediatric surgical and obstetric units with an OR (95% CI) of death of 3.9 (95% CI 2.3 to 6.4), 4.1 (95% CI 2.4 to 7.1), 7.9 (95% CI 3.2 to 20) and 3.2 (95% CI 0.39 to 27), respectively. Increased mortality across paediatric and obstetrical services at AIC-Kijabe Hospital correlated with the crippling of healthcare delivery in the public sector during the national physicians’ strike in Kenya.

Background Little is known on the trends of aeromedical retrieval during social isolation. Objectives To compare the pre, lockdown, and post‐lockdown aeromedical retrieval (AR) patient characteristics during a period of Coronavirus 2019 (COVID‐19) social isolation. Methods An observational study with retrospective data collection, consisting of AR between 26 January and 23 June 2020. Results There were 16981 ARs consisting of 1983 (11.7%) primary evacuations (PEs) and 14998 (88.3%) inter‐hospital transfers (IHTs), with a population median age of 52 years (interquartile range [IQR] 29.0–69.0), with 49.0% (n= 8283) of the cohort being male and 38.0% (n= 6399) being female. There were six confirmed and 230 suspected cases of COVID‐19, with the majority of cases (n=134; 58.3%) in the social isolation period. As compared to pre‐restriction, the odds of retrieval for the restriction and post‐restriction period differed across time between the major diagnostic groups. This included, an increase in cardiovascular retrieval for both restriction and post‐restriction periods (OR 1.12 95% CI 1.02‐1.24 and OR 1.18 95% CI 1.08‐1.30 respectively), increases in neoplasm in the post restriction period (OR 1.31 95% CI 1.04‐1.64), and increases for congenital conditions in the restriction period (OR 2.56 95% CI 1.39‐4.71). Cardiovascular and congenital conditions had increased rates of priority 1 patients in the restriction and post restriction periods. There was a decrease in endocrine and metabolic disease retrievals in the restriction period (OR 0.72 95% CI 0.53‐0.98). There were lower odds during the post‐restriction period for a retrievals of the respiratory system (OR 0.78 95% CI 0.67‐0.93), and disease of the skin (OR 0.78 95% CI 0.6‐1.0). Distribution between the 2019 and 2020 time periods differed (p<0.05), with the lockdown period resulting in a significant reduction in activity. Conclusion The lockdown period resulted in increased AR rates of circulatory and congenital conditions. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

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