Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
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Emerg Med Australas · Nov 2024
Impact of the Astra Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine on an emergency department.
To assess the impact of the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine roll-out on an ED. Primary outcomes are ED length of stay (LOS), investigation ordering and costs. Secondary measures are compliance with the Thrombosis and Haemostasis Society of Australia and New Zealand (THANZ) Vaccine-Induced Thrombotic Thrombocytopaenia Syndrome (VITT) guidelines. ⋯ A high number of young, low acuity patients presented to the ED with AZ vaccine concerns and were associated with financial and workload implications. The quantity of ED presentations appears to be associated with vaccine administration rates. There was poor compliance with the THANZ guidelines, and they appear to have contributed to the high volume of investigations.
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Emerg Med Australas · Nov 2024
The diagnostic utility of prehospital hyperglycaemia in major trauma patients: An observational study.
Stress-induced hyperglycaemia (SIH) is an elevated blood glucose level (≥11.1 mmol/L) in patients experiencing physiological stress, in the absence of diabetes mellitus. Although early in-hospital SIH has been associated with worse outcomes following major trauma, the predictive value of SIH in the prehospital setting has not been established. To investigate the role of prehospital SIH as a predictor of in-hospital mortality following major trauma. ⋯ The present study demonstrated an association between prehospital SIH and in-hospital mortality following major trauma. Further prospective research is warranted to examine the utility and integration of prehospital SIH into predicting models of trauma care.
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Emerg Med Australas · Nov 2024
We can do better: Recommendations for mental health crisis care from people with lived experience.
The ED is increasingly the first point of contact for people who have no alternative when they are in a mental health crisis. However, there is mounting evidence of inadequate and negative responses to mental health crises in the ED, which has been identified as a 'human rights flashpoint'. ⋯ These key messages arise from a phenomenological analysis of in-depth interviews with 31 users of ED services, a PhD study conducted by a lived experience researcher. The paper concludes with six recommendations that combine collective wished-for responses with tangible examples of how these desired responses can be translated into crisis care practice.
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Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2024
Experience, knowledge, practices and attitudes of emergency department medical staff regarding teledermatology.
The present study aimed to assess self-reported experience, knowledge, practices and attitudes of ED medical staff regarding teledermatology. ⋯ Skin photography image quality, knowledge and adherence to medicolegal policy were poor among ED medical staff. Education could reduce risk and improve outcomes.