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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Injury Prevention and Control
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1353342

Spinal cord injury due to road traffic accident in the pre-hospital phase: A grounded theory study in an Iranian context

Provisionally accepted
Elham Sepahvand Elham Sepahvand 1Hamidreza Khankeh Hamidreza Khankeh 2,3*Mohammadali Hosseini Mohammadali Hosseini 2Akhbari Akhbari Akhbari Akhbari 2
  • 1 Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Lorestan, Iran
  • 2 University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Evin, Iran
  • 3 Department of Clinical Science and Education, Södersjukhuset, Karolinska Institutet (KI), Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Introduction: Spinal cord injury is a devastating outcome for individuals and a major public health problem that leads to sensory, motor, and autonomic dysfunction and permanent disabilities. Thus, it is necessary to identify the causes of disability and injury both in the accident phase and in the post-accident phase. This study aimed to develop a theory based on which this complex environment can be discovered. Methods: This research was a grounded theory study with the constant comparative analysis recommended by Corbin and Strauss (2015). Participants in this study included 24 Participants were selected from Rofideh Rehabilitation Hospital and Shahid Jalaeipour Spinal Cord Injury Center of Tehran city in 2020. A semi-structured interview with an interview guide was used for data collection. Purposeful sampling method was performed within ten months until data saturation. Lincoln and Guba’s criteria were used to assess the scientific accuracy and validity of the study Findings: The results of interviews showed that "uncertainty" was identified as the most important concern of the injured people, and “trying to save the injured” was identified as the most important concern of the witnesses and families of the injured people. The main categories included "emotional interaction", "overwhelming anxiety", "the scene shock", "misunderstanding of the delay", "inadequate emergency service", and "insufficient understanding of the injury". Conclusion: In a traffic accident, uncertainty about the situation is the main concern of everyone at the crash scene, from pre-hospital emergency personnel, traffic police, and law enforcement officer to the patient's companions and other witnesses. Further research is needed to shed more light on this issue.

    Keywords: spinal cord injury, grounded theory, Emergency care, qualitative study, Spinal Cord

    Received: 13 Dec 2023; Accepted: 26 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Sepahvand, Khankeh, Hosseini and Akhbari. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Hamidreza Khankeh, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Evin, Iran

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