Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2021
Multicenter StudyEpidemiology and clinical features of emergency department patients with suspected COVID-19: Insights from Australia's 'second wave' (COVED-4).
The aim of the present study was to describe the epidemiology and clinical features of patients presenting to the ED with suspected and confirmed COVID-19 during Australia's 'second wave'. ⋯ In this prospective multi-site study during Australia's 'second wave', a substantial proportion of ED presentations required SARS-CoV-2 testing and isolation. Presence of SARS-CoV-2 on nasopharyngeal swab was associated with an increase in the odds of death and mechanical ventilation in hospital.
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2021
ReviewReview article: Have emergency department time-based targets influenced patient care? A systematic review of qualitative literature.
Time-based targets for ED length of stay were introduced in England in 2000, followed by the rest of the UK, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia after ED crowding was associated with poor quality of care and increased mortality. This systematic review evaluates qualitative literature to see if ED time-based targets have influenced patient care quality. ⋯ We conclude that time-based targets have impacted on the quality of emergency patient care, both positively and negatively. Successful implementation depends on whole hospital resourcing and engagement with targets.
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2021
Comparative StudyMental Health Presentations to Christchurch Hospital Emergency Department During COVID-19 Lockdown.
To describe mental health presentations to a tertiary ED in New Zealand during a national COVID-19 lockdown. ⋯ During the COVID-19 lockdown, both overall ED presentations as well as mental health-related presentations decreased. There was a relative increase in overdoses and self-harm, particularly involving paracetamol and ibuprofen.
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2021
Observational StudyEffect of simulation training on nurse leadership in a shared leadership model for cardiopulmonary resuscitation in the emergency department.
Empowering a senior nurse in a shared leadership role has been proposed as a more efficient set up for the cardiac arrest team in ED. In this model, a senior nurse leads the cardiac arrest algorithm which allows cognitive off-loading of the lead emergency physician. The emergency physician is then more available to perform tasks such as echocardiography and exclude reversible causes. Simulation provides an opportunity for training and practice of this shared leadership model. We hypothesised that a structured simulation training programme that focused on implementing a nurse and doctor shared leadership model for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), would improve leadership and teamwork quality in the setting of cardiac arrest as measured by a Trauma Non-technical Skills (T-NOTECHS) teamwork scale. ⋯ The present study shows that a short simulation training programme improved nurse leadership and teamwork performance in the setting of a shared leadership model for CPR in the ED which could easily be replicated in other departments.
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2021
Lunacy in a tertiary emergency department: A 3-year cohort study of the association between moon cycles and occupational violence and aggression.
Occupational violence and aggression (OVA) in the ED is an issue of global concern and increasing incidence. The empirical evidence for the relationship between the lunar cycle and 'lunatics' remains equivocal. The present study aims to examine the association between OVA in ED and the full moon (FM). ⋯ Contrary to traditional beliefs, the FQ and TQ of the lunar cycle but not the FM were associated with OVA. This highlights a relatively unexplored relationship that has previously been overshadowed by the FM in the literature. Prediction models of violence in the ED could consider incorporating the FQ and TQ of the lunar cycle in their models.