Emergency
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Patients with Nonspecific, Atypical Symptoms Could Be Misdiagnosed
An emergency medicine professor explains how providers can reduce risks for ED patients who present with unusual symptoms.
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Harsh Criticism for New Report on ED Diagnostic Errors
New research that might have injected renewed vigor into improving diagnostic performance in the ED has instead prompted much uproar. In the emergency medicine community, that discussion has been overshadowed by biting criticism about the data and the methodologies investigators used to reach their conclusions — and what some are calling unfair blame placed at the foot of emergency providers.
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Emergency Care of the Medically Complex Pediatric Patient
Children with special healthcare needs require an individualized approach based on their unique situations. Acute care providers must be familiar with the special devices, potential complications, and evaluations necessary for children with these devices. Early involvement of pediatric specialists may be necessary to provide optimal care to these children. The authors discuss many aspects of the care of children with special healthcare needs to enhance and optimize outcomes.
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Instituting Pediatric Readiness Standards Saves Lives
Emergency departments that fully adopted national guidelines reported lower mortality rates.
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Malpractice Lawsuits Allege Wrongful Prolongation of Life
The top problems in these cases are charting and communication among caregivers.
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Multiple Legal Issues with ED End-of-Life Care
An attorney argues missing the opportunity to respect autonomy in care decision-making for a patient who no longer desires curative care should be considered a poor outcome.
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Some ED Patients Undergo Unwanted End-of-Life Care
Despite uncertainty, it is possible to provide value-concordant care in the ED. Identify those patients, and initiate decisions based on goals of care, not just by a default reflexive pathway. This could help improve patients’ experiences and outcomes broadly, by targeting the right treatments to the right patients.
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To Understand a Patient’s Housing Status, Ask the Right Questions
Staff at every point of contact should be alert to relevant patient needs, including housing status, food insecurity, and ability to pay. All these go into making medicine human.
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Effectively Intervening with Patients Facing Housing Instability
There is a moral and humanitarian case for healthcare organizations to engage on the housing issue, but there also is a business case.
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Trauma Patients at Risk for Developing Opioid Use Disorder
Better identification and referral of patients with opioid use disorder could enhance the quality and continuity of care these patients receive, while also reducing reliance on EDs and the crowding that ensues.