Mobile health follow-up screening to risk stratify patients in need of further care in a low resource setting: Results from a prospective multisite implementation study

Background: Routine in-person follow-up for injured patients after hospital discharge is unfeasible in low- and middle-income countries where trauma morbidity and mortality are the highest. Mobile technology screening may facilitate early detection of complications and timely treatment. In this prospective, multisite implementation study, we cross-validate the performance of a cellphone screening tool developed to risk stratify trauma patients in need of further care after discharge in Cameroon.

Methods: Between June 2019 and August 2022, research assistants contacted trauma patients by cellphone 2 weeks after discharge to administer a 14-question follow-up survey. All surveyed patients were asked to return for a physical examination. Physicians blinded to survey results categorized patients as low or moderate or high risk (HR) for poor outcomes without further care. Logistic regression tested associations between each survey question and physician examination. Predictive survey questions generated a preliminary model with high sensitivity for identifying patients in need of further care.

Results: Of 1,712 successfully contacted patient households, 96% (1643) participated in telephone triage compared with 33% (560) who returned for physician examination. Physicians designated 39% (220) as being HR. On multiple logistic regression, 8 of 13 candidate triage questions were independently associated with HR. Positive survey response on the resultant eight question screen yielded 89.2% sensitivity for HR with a 10.8% false negative rate. Weighted for variable importance based on triage risk scores, 39% of triaged patients screened as low risk, 39% as moderate risk, and 22% as high risk for HR. Likelihood of HR was significantly greater for patients screening as high (odds ratio, 5.9) or moderate risk (odds ratio, 1.9; both p < 0.01).

Conclusion: Cellphone triage provides sensitive risk stratification of patients in need of further care after hospital discharge in Cameroon. Given low in-person return rates, limited resources should highly prioritize efforts to repatriate patients screening as high risk for poor outcomes.

Level of evidence: Therapeutic/Care Management; Level III.