The effect of trauma advanced practice nurse programme at a Level I regional trauma centre in mainland China

AIMS: Trauma is the fifth‐leading cause of death in China. Despite the establishment of the Chinese Regional Trauma Care System (CRTCS) in 2016, advanced trauma nurse practice has not been incorporated. This study aimed to identify the roles and responsibilities of trauma advanced practice nurse (APN), and to investigate the impact on patient outcomes in a Level I regional trauma centre in mainland China. DESIGN: A single‐centre pre‐ and post‐control design was used. METHODS: The trauma APN programme was established based on multidisciplinary experts' consultation. A retrospective study was conducted on all Level I trauma patients over a period of 5 years, spanning from January 2017 to December 2021, with a sample size of 2420. The data were divided into two comparison groups: a pre‐APN programme (January 2017–December 2018; n = 1112) and post‐APN programme (January 2020–December 2021; n = 1308). A comparison analysis was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of trauma APN who were integrated into the trauma care team, with a focus on patient outcomes and time‐efficiency indicators. RESULTS: The certification of the regional Level I trauma centre resulted in a 17.63% increase in the number of trauma patients. The integration of advanced practice nurses (APN) into the trauma care system led to significant improvements in time‐efficiency indicators, with the exception of advanced airway establishment time (p < 0.05). The average emergency department length of stay (LOS) decreased 21%, from 168 to 132 min (p < 0.001); additionally, the mean intensive care unit LOS decreased by nearly 1 day (p = 0.028). Trauma patients who were treated by trauma APN had a higher likelihood of survival, with an odds ratio of 1.816 (95%CI: 1.041, 3.167; p = 0.033), compared to patients who received care prior to the implementation of the trauma APN program. CONCLUSION: A trauma APN programme has the potential to enhance the quality of trauma care in the CRTCS. IMPACT: This study elucidates the roles and responsibilities of trauma advanced practice nurses (APN) in a Level I regional trauma centre in mainland China. Trauma care quality was significantly improved after the application of a trauma APN programme. In regions with inadequate medical resources, the utilization of advanced practice trauma nurses can enhance the quality of trauma care. In addition, trauma APN can provide a trauma nursing education programme within the regional centres as a strategy to augment the proficiency of regional trauma nursing. No patient or public contribution, the research data all from trauma data bank.