International emergency nursing
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Penetrating cardiac and great vessels trauma is life threatening and a surgical challenge. We relate an unusual case of pulmonary artery injury secondary to an accidental trauma by a nail gun. Surgical repair was late but successful.
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We developed a stream system to the current triangle system in order to manage patient flow at the emergency department and to clarify ENP role boundaries. ⋯ This study showed excellent correlation between the ENP-streaming and patients' injury severity and resource utilisation, suggesting high internal validity of our triage streaming system. It clarifies the ENP role, minimising the subjectivity of patient allocation.
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Little is known about the public's preferences for pain management prior to attending an Emergency Department (ED). Therefore, the aim of the study was to explore (i) triage documentation of pre-hospital analgesic patterns for patients presenting in pain; (ii) patient documented explanations for not self administering an analgesic in the pre-hospital setting; (iii) triage nurse documentation of pain descriptors and or pain scores; and (iv) the disposition of ED patients presenting in pain. ⋯ Unnecessary suffering may be avoided if the public had a better understanding of pain and the benefits of pain management. Further research is required to better understand the beliefs and attitudes towards pain and pain management by clinicians and the public.
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The article examines the evidence for giving oxygen routinely to patients with suspected myocardial infarction, and addresses the challenges in changing practice. ⋯ A systematic review of studies did not confirm that the use of routine oxygen in the acute stages of a myocardial infarction reduces myocardial ischemia. In reality, some evidence suggests that oxygen may even increase myocardial ischemia. Therefore it is crucial that emergency care nurses/practitioners across the world use observation skills and monitoring such as pulse oximetry to recognise the clinical need for supplementary oxygen to be given to a patient.