Evaluation of the implementation of a quality improvement program through morbidity and mortality reviews in a developing country.

Background: Morbidity and mortality reviews represent an opportunity to discuss adverse events and healthcare issues. Aim: Report the first experience of implementing a procedure of MMR, and assess its impact on quality improvement. Methods: From July 2019 to December 2019, members of the surgical and ICU departments designed and implemented a regular procedure of MMR. Cases of severe postoperative complications after curative resection for digestive cancer were selected to be presented by a surgical resident and discussed in an interdisciplinary conference following a standardized presentation based on an analysis tool adapted from the ALARM framework. Process was assessed by the number of MMRs held, number and type of recommendations issued and implemented. Results: Among 13 serious complications during the study period, 10 were discussed. The "Tasks" category was activated in 90% of the cases where lack or misuse of protocols was identified in 90% of the events discussed. Test results availability or accuracy were incarnated in 30% of cases. Poor communication was a contributing factor in 60% of the cases. Written medical records were defective in 40% of the cases. From 16 recommendations for improvement emitted, 87.5% (14/16) were translated into projects and successfully implemented. Conclusions: a standardized and regular procedure of morbidity and mortality reviews in a tertiary care facility in a developing country allowed a significant improvement in patient care through quality initiatives implementation. MMRs might be a strong tool for the improvement of surgical care particularly for low-mid income countries.

Mid-Term Audit of a National Peritoneal Surface Malignancy Program Implementation in a Low Middle Income Country: The Moroccan Experience.

Implementing a multimodal management of peritoneal surface malignancies is a steep and complex process, especially as complete cytoreductive surgery (CRS) is the backbone and the major prognostic factor for hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) procedures. The implementation of such a program is a challenging process, particularly in low-middle income (LMIC) countries where ressource restrictions may represent a major hurdle to HIPEC appliances acquisition. Herein is the first audit of the implementation of a national peritoneal malignancy program in a north African country. The audit process was performed according to the three implementation steps, namely initiation ("1":2005-2008), transition ("2":2009-2013) and consolidation ("3":2014-2017). We included all consecutive CRS without HIPEC performed with curative intent for ovarian, gastric, colorectal and pseudomyxoma peritonei type of malignancies with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance Status ≤ 2. Target outcomes for incomplete cytoreduction (ICRS), serious complications ≥ 3b according to the Clavien-Dindo scoring, and early oncologic failure (EOF; disease progression within 2 years of treatment) were compared between the three phases. Independent risk factors correlated to these three outcomes were calculated using a logistic regression model.198 CRS procedures were completed with 49, 60 and 89 cases performed in the three phases, respectively. Overall, patients were comparable except for ECOG and ASA scores which were more severe in the third phase. The comparison of ICRS, serious complications and EOF rates showed a significant reduction between the three phases with (34%, 18% and 4% p = <0.001), (30.6%, 20% and 11.2%, p = 0.019) and (38.8%, 23.3% and 12.4% p = 0.002) respectively. Undergoing CRS in phase 3 on the other hand was a predictive factor of better short term surgical and oncological outcomes and completeness of cytoreduction, while ECOG performance status and spleno-pancreatectomy were also predictive factors of serious complications.

Predictive Factors for Impaired Mental Health among Medical Students during the Early Stage of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Morocco.

The COVID-19 pandemic has great consequences on mental health. We aimed to assess medical students' psychological condition and influencing factors as a baseline evidence for interventions promoting their mental wellbeing. We conducted an online survey from April 8 to April 18, 2020 to examine the mental health of medical students by the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire, seven-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, seven-item Insomnia Severity Index, and six-item Kessler psychological distress scale. Factors associated with mental health outcomes were identified by multivariable logistic regression analysis. Five hundred forty-nine students completed the survey; 341 (62.3%), 410 (74.6%), 344 (62.6%), and 379 (69%) reported anxiety, depression, insomnia, and distress, respectively. Female students, living in high COVID-19 prevalence locations, more than 25 days confinement, psychiatric consult history, and being in a preclinical level of studies had higher median scores and severe symptom levels. Multivariable logistic regression showed female gender as a risk factor for severe symptoms of anxiety (odds ratio [OR]: 1.653; 95% CI: 1.020-2.679; P = 0.042), depression (OR: 2.167; 95% CI: 1.435-3.271; P < 0.001), insomnia (OR: 1.830; 95% CI: 1.176-2.847; P = 0.007), and distress (OR: 1.994; 95% CI: 1.338-2.972; P = 0.001); preclinical level of enrollment as a risk factor for depression (OR: 0.679; 95% CI: 0.521-0.885; P = 0.004), insomnia (OR: 0.720; 95% CI: 0.545-0.949; P = 0.02), and distress (OR: 0.650; 95% CI: 0.499-0.847; P = 0.001), whereas living in high COVID-19 prevalence locations was a risk factor for severe anxiety (OR: 1.628; 95% CI: 1.090-2.432; P = 0.017) and depression (OR: 1.438; 95% CI: 1.002-2.097; P = 0.05). Currently, medical students experience high levels of mental health symptoms, especially female students, those at a preclinical level and living in regions with a high prevalence of COVID-19 cases. Screening for mental health issues, psychological support, and long-term follow-up could alleviate the burden and protect future physicians.

Correction to: Contributing factors to severe complications after liver resection: an aggregate root cause analysis in 105 consecutive patients.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article.

Supraclavicular versus infraclavicular approach in inserting totally implantable central venous access for cancer therapy: A comparative retrospective study.

INTRODUCTION: The insertion of an implantable central venous access is performed according to a variety of approaches which allow the access to the subclavian vein, yet the supraclavicular technique has been underused and never compared to the other methods. The aim of this study was to testify on the efficacy and safety of the subclavian puncture without ultrasound guidance « Yoffa ¼ in comparison with the classical infraclavicular approach (ICA). MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is a retrospective study with prospective data collection on patients followed at the national oncology institute for cancer, in the period extending from May 1st 2017 to August 31st 2017. All patients had a totally implantable central venous access device inserted by the same surgeon AS for chemotherapy administration and demographic characteristics, as well as procedure details were examined. The primary outcomes were the intraoperative complications, while the secondary outcomes represented immediate postoperative and mid-term complications (at 15 months of follow up). Outcomes were compared between techniques by means of non parametric tests and the Fischer test. RESULTS: Our study included 135 patients with 70 patients undergoing the subclavian technique, while 65 were subject to the infraclavicular approach. Both groups had no statistically significant demographic characteristics. The number of vein puncture attempts exceeding once, the accidental artery puncture and operative time were more significant in the ICA group; (39,6 vs 17,6 p = 0,01) (9.2% vs 0; p = 0,01) and (27± 13 vs 23± 8min, p = 0.045) respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in the immediate and midterm complication rate between the two methods 1(1,4) vs 2 (3) p = 0.5. CONCLUSION: In case of unavailability of ultrasonographic guidance, the use of the supra-clavicular landmarks approach is linked to higher success rates and less arterial punctures, thereby proving to be a safe and reliable approach.

Endovascular treatment of a tuberculous thoracoabdominal aneurysm with the Multilayer stent.

PURPOSE: To describe a case of multiple thoracoabdominal aneurysms of tuberculous origin treated in an endovascular procedure with the Multilayer stent. CASE REPORT: A 16-year-old girl had been treated 4 years previously for a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm of tuberculous origin. Due to the presence of 4 rapidly evolving saccular aneurysms of the descending thoracic aorta and a fusiform aneurysm of the suprarenal aorta, an endovascular solution was chosen after the patient refused open surgery. Three uncovered Multilayer stents (16×40, 16×80, and 16×80 mm) were successively implanted with a 1-cm overlap from the left subclavian artery to cover the entire aneurysmal segment of the thoracoabdominal aorta to above the renal arteries. At 18 months, serial imaging studies have shown disappearance of some aneurysms and regression of others. CONCLUSION: In this young patient, the endovascular treatment of a thoracoabdominal aneurysm with an uncovered stent made it possible to stabilize the aneurysm process without exposing the patient to the high morbidity and mortality of open surgery.