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Emergency physicians are often consulted by patients experiencing ocular symptoms. It is estimated that more than two million emergency department (ED) visits occur in the United States every year (approximately 3% of total ED visits) due to ocular complaints. Acute vision loss is an especially frightening experience that leads many patients to seek emergency care. Although this symptom is rarely life-threatening, early recognition and treatment of the cause is of paramount importance, as the patient may permanently lose sight in the affected eye(s). Emergency physicians (EPs) should be adept at diagnosing, treating, and obtaining appropriate ophthalmology consultation and follow up for this reason.
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The acute presentation of the technology-assisted child in the emergency department (ED) setting is a dreaded situation. These children often have numerous ongoing chronic medical conditions, and their lives are assisted by adjuncts that aid feeding, breathing, administration of medication, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) drainage. When these devices malfunction, they can put children at risk of serious medical and surgical problems.
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Pediatric hand injuries are common in the emergency department (ED), and may be challenging to manage. Children may be frightened and uncooperative, making a thorough and careful evaluation difficult.
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Inability to find an attorney who will take a malpractice case on a contingency fee basis. An inability to find an expert who can conclude to a reasonable degree of medical certainty that the ED physician breached the standard of care or proximately caused injury/death. Strong defense experts. Strong testimony from defendant physicians. Damaging admissions by the plaintiff's experts at deposition. A decision by the patient or family to resolve the matter now without going through the ordeal of a trial.
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The issue of drug-seeking is important for any health care provider, but can be of particular relevance to emergency department (ED) staff. This article analyzes the laws applicable to assessing and treating pain in the ED setting, and considers various strategies suggested in the literature for managing suspected drug-seeking behavior.
