Pilot Trial of a Clinical Decision-Support App for Managing Emergencies Among Clinicians in a Rural Ugandan Hospital

This study is testing a new mobile application called the OASES App, developed by the University of Milano-Bicocca. The App is designed to help frontline clinicians (nurses, clinical officers, and nursing assistants) provide faster and more accurate emergency care for patients with life-threatening conditions such as severe diarrhea, breathing difficulties, and seizures. The OASES App guides clinicians step by step through internationally recognized emergency care guidelines, including triage, diagnosis, and treatment recommendations. It is intended to be used offline on a tablet, making it suitable for rural hospitals with limited resources. This is a pilot study to understand whether the App improves the way clinicians manage simulated emergency cases compared to standard practice. About 16 clinicians at Dr. Ambrosoli Memorial Hospital, Kalongo, Uganda will take part in structured simulation exercises using realistic patient scenarios. Each participant will manage cases with and without the App, so that the two approaches can be compared. The main goal is to evaluate whether the App helps clinicians follow evidence-based guidelines more consistently. Other goals include measuring accuracy of triage, diagnosis, and treatment decisions, as well as the time needed to complete cases and clinicians' perceptions of usability, trust, and feasibility. No real patients will be involved in this study. All scenarios are simulations conducted in a safe, controlled environment. The results will help refine the App and inform the design of a larger study in the future.