Emergency Medicine - Adult and Pediatric
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When Psychiatric Patient Comes to ED, Consider Entire Hospital’s Capabilities
An attorney who worked on the case provides detailed information about a recent record-breaking EMTALA settlement.
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Inspector General Sets Sights on ED Psychiatric Boarding Practices
Psychiatric patients are held routinely in EDs for hours, days, or even weeks due to lack of available facilities. Few would argue it’s a high-risk situation for the patient, EPs, and the hospital; yet, the dangerous practice continues.
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Non-prudent Limits on Patient Visits: Overcoming Barriers to Provide Necessary Care
Since EMTALA requires medical professionals to provide care to their patients, big insurance companies see no reason to provide payment for care they do not feel like covering. While some argue that on the surface this is their right to pay only for necessary services, the decision to retrospectively deny coverage is a fundamental assault on the rights of patients to seek emergency care and providers to bill for legitimate services rendered. Using the “retrospectoscope” to lecture patients and providers about care for serious health threats is a disservice to all medical professionals. It is unconscionable, immoral, illegal, and potentially unconstitutional.
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The Pediatric Airway and Rapid Sequence Intubation in Trauma
This article will discuss in detail the approach to the pediatric trauma patient, with a strict focus on the pediatric airway.
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Hemodynamic Monitoring Modalities in the Emergency Department
Hemodynamic monitoring is a very important component in effectively resuscitating critically ill patients. Various methods of hemodynamic monitoring not only give the physician an idea of the patient’s overall pathophysiology, but can alert the physician to acute changes.
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Joint Arthrocentesis in the Emergency Department
The ability to rapidly recognize infection, as well as distinguish inflammatory arthropathy from infection, crystal arthropathy, and osteoarthritis, makes arthrocentesis a valuable and sometimes essential emergency medicine procedure.
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Pediatric Airway Management
Pediatric patients frequently present with respiratory complaints. Fortunately, most children respond well to simple medical interventions. Understanding a child's anatomic and physiologic differences is critical to effectively preventing respiratory failure and stabilizing a child when it occurs.
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EP Defendants Need Forensic IT Experts to Explain EMRs
A recent malpractice lawsuit against an EP alleged that a patient coded and spent two weeks in an ICU because he received a medication to which he was allergic. Since the electronic medical record (EMR) clearly documented the patient’s allergy to the medication, at first glance, it looked as though the EP had made a colossal mistake. However, this was not the case.
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Missed Compartment Syndrome in the ED Often Leads to Litigation
Compartment syndrome is one of the few true orthopedic emergencies seen in the ED, and the consequences can be dire.
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Do State Damage Caps Apply to EMTALA?
A recent case is a good example of how a delay in implementing an order can expose EDs to EMTALA and medical malpractice claims.