Emergency Medicine - Adult and Pediatric
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Recognizing Pediatric Sepsis: Early Diagnosis Critical to Recovery
Identifying pediatric sepsis and treating it quickly can be a matter of life and death.
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Pediatric Sepsis and Septic Shock
Pediatric sepsis is a high-stakes diagnosis that requires vigilance to make an early, timely diagnosis. Aggressive resuscitation, including fluids, antibiotics, and vasoactive agents, may be necessary. Rapidly changing standard of care also makes sepsis a critical diagnosis for clinicians.
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Acute Ischemic Stroke Due to Large Vessel Occlusion
Acute stroke reperfusion therapies have led to significant reduction in the morbidity and mortality associated with ischemic strokes due to large vessel occlusion. This article will discuss the prevalence, mechanism, diagnosis, and treatment options of acute ischemic stroke due to large vessel occlusion.
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ED Providers’ Documentation Clashes Help Plaintiffs Prove Negligence
If ED providers’ documentation conflicts in any way, plaintiff attorneys will use this to bolster a malpractice case. Conflicting documentation makes it difficult for either side to determine what really happened.
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‘Gotcha’ Deposition Questions Can Devastate Even Well-prepared EPs
Deposition questions are designed to elicit damaging testimony from EPs. A “yes” response to a seemingly innocuous question about the standard of care can lead to a world of trouble for the defense team.
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Sparse Neurology Exam Complicates ED Defense of Missed Stroke
Sparse or inaccurate charting allows plaintiff attorneys to allege inadequate neurological examination in missed stroke cases against EPs. However, documentation that includes a thorough description of all the aspects of the exam, an explanation of why the EP didn’t think stroke was likely, and an indication that the EP consulted a neurologist can help the defense.
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Late Electronic Medical Record Entries Create Indefensible ED Malpractice Claims
Malpractice cases may become indefensible if the forensic IT expert can prove the ED chart was altered in some way. Data regarding physical examination or history can appear self-serving. The veracity of altered information will be questioned. Even if the EP’s motive was valid, it may appear otherwise.
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EPs Face Legal Exposure as ‘Captain of the Ship,’ Even for Triage Mistakes
An EP could be hundreds of feet away when a patient with a life-threatening condition is mistriaged. That doesn’t necessarily stop an affected patient from suing that EP for the resulting adverse outcome.
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Advanced Cardiac Life Support Updates
The American Heart Association Advanced Cardiac Life Support guidelines are recognized as the authoritative reference for acute cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Emergency medicine providers should be thoroughly familiar with these guidelines.
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Soft Tissue Disorders of the Neck in Children
Pediatric patients frequently present to the emergency department with issues affecting the soft tissues of the neck. This article will focus on the assessment, evaluation, differential, and treatment of both superficial and deep neck soft tissue disorders that clinicians should consider in the emergency setting.