Objectives: High rates of morbidity and mortality are a result of trauma being a significant health burden in Saudi Arabia. We evaluated the current trends of primary healthcare (PHC) physicians in Saudi Arabia toward patients with bleeding and their referral awareness for percutaneous endovascular arterial embolization (EAE).
Methods: We formulated a 13-question survey to assess PHC physicians' knowledge regarding decision-making and appropriate approaches to manage patients with traumatic and non-traumatic abdominopelvic and lower limb bleeding. We conducted in-person surveys with various specialists with varying levels of clinical experience in Saudi Arabia.
Results: Overall, 112 PHC physicians were assessed. Of them, 43.75% had ≥5 years of independent practice experience, and 72.3% and 27.7% encountered bleeding patients rarely and routinely, respectively. General practitioners scored lower across all questions than other PHC physicians. Physicians with >10 years of practice had higher median scores in decision-making questions (p = 0.159). Internists and gynecologists (p = 0.046) and physicians (p = 0.050) in tertiary-care settings had significantly higher median scores on decision-making questions. Pediatricians (p = 0.091) and PHC physicians (p = 0.440) at private institutions had higher median scores on approach appropriateness questions.
Conclusions: PHC physicians in Saudi Arabia require a better understanding of the indications of EAE to avoid referral and triage errors, inefficient use of healthcare resources, and suboptimal patient outcomes.
Keywords: Approach; appropriateness; bleeding; decision-making; embolization; endovascular; trauma.