Background:
Road Traffic Injuries (RTIs) are one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Annually, about 500 people are killed and 8000 are injured in Georgia. RTI surveillance is recommended to define the burden, identify high-risk groups, plan interventions, and monitor their impact. The study aimed to identify the existing gaps and needs in medical staff skills and competencies regarding national hospital-based nonfatal RTI data collection and processing.

Methods: The online survey was conducted among medical doctors and statisticians of hospitals, who have the responsibility of RTI data collection through the existing electronic database. The information was gathered by a standardized anonymous questionnaire, which assessed the skills and competencies of healthcare staff, participating in RTIs data collection procedures. The questionnaires were distributed to 130 hospitals.

Results: A total of 59 medical doctors and 50 statisticians participated in the survey. 86% of interviewed doctors and 62% of statisticians always indicate the external causes according to the ICD-10 external cause code in the patient’s medical card. 14% of the doctor respondents do not see the purpose of collecting this data since it does not have clinical value and they do not have any guidance. 51% of surveyed statisticians go to a doctor to clarify which code is the main, and 8% of them choose one code by a chance.

Conclusions: The results of this survey revealed existing gaps and needs in the collection and processing data of the patients hospitalized due to road accidents. A number of activities are important to improve the quality of road injuries data collection and analysis methods. Recommendations: It′s essential: to organize periodic training for medical staff on the ICD-10 classification and especially on raising an awareness about the importance of identification of the ICD-10 external cause code; to prepare the guidelines on the determination of external causes of injuries, including the responsible person’s description for this activity.

Key words: Road traffic injury, surveillance, ICD-10 classification, external cause.

National Center for Diseases Control and Public Health - Tbilisi - Georgia - Georgia