ArticleBMC health services research2025
Decision-making in interhospital transfer of traumatic brain injury patients: exploring the perspectives of surgeons at general hospitals and neurosurgeons at neurotrauma centres.
Article in BMC health services research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Ceiling of Care in Acute Care Settings: A Concept Analysis.Journal of nursing management · 2026Pooled it
- Delays in seeking and reaching care for injured patients in four low-income and middle-income countries: a cohort study.BMJ global health · 2026Article
- Possible detrimental effects of postponed intubation during interhospital transfer of severely brain injured patients: retrospective analysis of the Traumaregister DGUEuropean journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundTraumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant public health concern. Advancing age and comorbidities are associated with a reduced probability of being transferred to neurotrauma centres (NTCs) from non-neurosurgical acute care trauma hospitals (ACTHs). However, the extent to which these decisions reflect well-considered treatment-limiting decisions and which influence other factors have on the decision-making process remains unclear.
objectiveTo increase the understanding of adults' access to NTC care by exploring the decision-making process for interhospital transfer of patients with isolated TBI, elucidating factors influencing these decisions.
methodsFifteen surgeons and neurosurgeons from four hospitals in Norway were recruited through purposive sampling to four semi-structured focus group interviews. Surgeons represented ACTHs and neurosurgeons NTCs, and all participants were responsible for TBI patients' initial care and transfer decisions. Interviews were thematically analysed.
resultsWe identified several factors influencing transfer decisions, captured in six main themes under one overarching theme; 'The chance of a favourable outcome'. The six main themes reflect surgeons' and neurosurgeons' decision-making process, which included clinical and system-level factors: (A) 'Establish TBI severity: Glasgow Coma Scale score and head CT', (B) 'Preinjury health status: comorbidity, functioning, and age', (C) 'Distance from ACTH to NTC: distance is time and time is brain', (D) 'Uncertainty and insecurity', (E) 'Capacity at NTC', and (F) 'Next of kin involvement'.
conclusionOn-call surgeons and neurosurgeons responsible for making transfer decisions for TBI patients emphasise the importance of patient-centred decisions, including individual patients' risk factors and overall health status.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.