Chamath Premawardena1, Donald Bowden1,2, Zane Kaplan1,2, Claire Dendle1,3, Ian John Woolley1,3. 1. a Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences , Monash University , Clayton , Australia. 2. b Department of Haematology , Monash Health , Clayton , Australia. 3. c Department of Infectious Diseases , Monash Health , Clayton , Australia.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Asplenia and hyposplenism carry a significant risk of ongoing morbidity and mortality which can be reduced by education, vaccination and antibiotic use. We aimed to assess education and other methods of prevention in a cohort of patients with haemoglobinopathy in a tertiary referral centre, which also had access to a post-splenectomy registry created to reduce post-splenectomy infection risk. METHODS: A standardized questionnaire was used on patients who attended the service for regular therapy. Patients were also asked about standard post-splenectomy preventive therapies including antibiotics and vaccinations. RESULTS: There were 49 patients who had either had a splenectomy or knew their spleen to be non-functional. Of these, nearly half knew themselves to be on the Victorian Spleen Registry (51.0%). The median knowledge score was 12 (range 4-17) out of a possible 18. Most significantly the benefits of the registry were not seen in terms of knowledge but in delivery of recommended vaccines and the use of a medical alert card. CONCLUSION: This study examined knowledge and attitudes about splenectomy in a cohort of haemoglobinopathy patients in an Australian tertiary referral centre. The majority had good or fair knowledge with a strong association of some elements of post-splenectomy care with being placed on a spleen registry and having received targeted education. Implementation of systematic approaches by medical staff is likely to be the main benefit of a clinical registry approach in this setting.
OBJECTIVES:Asplenia and hyposplenism carry a significant risk of ongoing morbidity and mortality which can be reduced by education, vaccination and antibiotic use. We aimed to assess education and other methods of prevention in a cohort of patients with haemoglobinopathy in a tertiary referral centre, which also had access to a post-splenectomy registry created to reduce post-splenectomy infection risk. METHODS: A standardized questionnaire was used on patients who attended the service for regular therapy. Patients were also asked about standard post-splenectomy preventive therapies including antibiotics and vaccinations. RESULTS: There were 49 patients who had either had a splenectomy or knew their spleen to be non-functional. Of these, nearly half knew themselves to be on the Victorian Spleen Registry (51.0%). The median knowledge score was 12 (range 4-17) out of a possible 18. Most significantly the benefits of the registry were not seen in terms of knowledge but in delivery of recommended vaccines and the use of a medical alert card. CONCLUSION: This study examined knowledge and attitudes about splenectomy in a cohort of haemoglobinopathy patients in an Australian tertiary referral centre. The majority had good or fair knowledge with a strong association of some elements of post-splenectomy care with being placed on a spleen registry and having received targeted education. Implementation of systematic approaches by medical staff is likely to be the main benefit of a clinical registry approach in this setting.
Authors: Natalya Elizabeth O'Neill; Jillian Baker; Richard Ward; Colleen Johnson; Linda Taggart; Michelle Sholzberg Journal: BMJ Open Qual Date: 2020-08