The current quality and requirements of prehospital and emergency care in Indonesia and Malaysia: a cross-sectional multicenter survey

Abstract

Background Rapid economic growth in Southeast Asian countries has led to a significant gap between supply and demand of emergency care, which may negatively affect the health outcomes of local populations. The purpose of this study was to identify current challenges faced by emergency care systems in Indonesia and Malaysia. Methods An online survey was conducted between August and November 2022. Survey participants consisted of emergency department (ED) doctors, nurses, and other medical staff in 11 hospitals in Indonesia and Malaysia. The survey collected information on respondents' characteristics, factors associated with the quality of prehospital or ED care, missing clinical information, and factors associated with patients' length of stay at the ED. Results A total of 83 and 109 respondents from Indonesia and Malaysia, respectively, answered the survey. The most important factor affecting prehospital care quality in both countries was "inadequate amount of clinical information from the ambulance." The most important factor affecting ED care quality was "crowdedness in the emergency room during night shifts." The clinical information most frequently missing was family history, followed by estimated time of arrival to the hospital or medication history. The primary factor affecting the length of ED stay was diagnostic studies and their turnaround time. Conclusions This study identified common challenges in the emergency care systems of Indonesia and Malaysia. Our findings highlight the importance of recognizing both common and country-specific challenges to improve the quality of emergency care in Southeast Asia.