Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
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Emerg Med Australas · Aug 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyComparison of lignocaine and water-based lubricating gels for female urethral catheterization: a randomized controlled trial.
It is standard practice to use lignocaine gel during male urethral catheterization. However, it is commonly believed that topical anaesthetic confers no benefit during female catheterization hence lubricating gel alone is more commonly used. The present study aimed to determine whether lignocaine gel decreased pain compared with water-based lubricating gel for female urethral catheterization in the ED. ⋯ Lignocaine gel substantially reduces the procedural pain of female urethral catheterization by comparison with use of a water-based lubricating gel.
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Increasing demand to reduce patient waiting times and improve patient flow has led to the introduction of a number of strategies such as fast track and patient streaming. The triage nurse is primarily responsible for identifying suitable patients, based on prediction of likely admission or discharge. The aim of the present study was to explore the accuracy with which triage nurses predict patient disposition. ⋯ Triage nurses can accurately predict likely discharge in specific subgroups of ED patients. This supports the role of triage nurses in appropriately identifying patients suitable for 'fast track' or streaming.
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Emergency medicine in the highly advanced world is traditionally performed in two different ways. The first is the well-known Anglo-American system with skilled EDs, and a pre-hospital emergency medical service utilizing paramedics. The second is the so-called Franco-German system, with a highly developed pre-hospital emergency physician service, but only a basic organization of hospital-based emergency medicine. ⋯ The last milestone, the development of academic emergency centres, has only just started. This process will take some time. The present paper describes the present and future of emergency medicine in some European countries using these criteria.
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Emerg Med Australas · Aug 2007
Comparative StudyThe safety of nurse clearance of the cervical spine using the National Emergency X-radiography Utilization Study low-risk criteria.
To determine the level of agreement between trained ED nursing staff and senior ED medical staff in the application and interpretation of the National Emergency X-radiography Utilization Study (NEXUS) low-risk criteria (NLC). ⋯ The study demonstrated a high level of agreement between nursing and medical staff for stable low-risk trauma patients.