Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England
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Ann R Coll Surg Engl · Mar 2006
Multicenter StudyHow well equipped are ENT wards for airway emergencies?
With increased cross cover of specialities at night and more direct triaging of casualty patients to ENT wards, there is an increased need to ensure that there is adequate provision of emergency airway management. There are currently no national guidelines on what equipment should be available on ENT wards, and the authors have devised a portable airway box with all equipment deemed necessary to manage an acute airway. We believe that all junior doctors covering ENT should have airway training and access to an airway box. The aim of this study was to determine the provision of on-ward airway equipment and training on ENT wards in England. ⋯ Results suggest poor provision of emergency airway equipment and training on wards. We recommend the use of an airway box, and list of minimal equipment required.
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Scapular fracture as a direct result of electric shock is a rare injury. We present a case report and review of the literature.
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Ann R Coll Surg Engl · Mar 2006
Co-operation with pre-operative cardiovascular monitoring amongst children for chair dental general anaesthesia.
The Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland (AAGBI) guidelines Recommendations for standards of monitoring during anaesthesia and recovery state that cardiovascular monitoring for induction of general anaesthesia should include pulse oximetry and non-invasive blood pressure measurement, but recognise that young patients may not co-operate sufficiently to allow this. The aim of this study was to look at levels of compliance possible for pulse oximetry and non-invasive blood pressure measurement, in a population known to be unco-operative with therapeutic interventions. ⋯ The majority of children, including the very young, attending for chair dental general anaesthesia, will co-operate sufficiently to allow cardiovascular monitoring during induction of anaesthesia, even though the majority will not tolerate exodontia under local anaesthesia.
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Ann R Coll Surg Engl · Mar 2006
Identifying high-risk patients undergoing urgent and emergency surgery.
The aim was to identify high-risk patients undergoing non-elective orthopaedic and general surgery. ⋯ A simple scoring system could be used to identify high-risk patients who require non-elective surgery that could be a target for interventions to try and reduce their risk of death.
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Ann R Coll Surg Engl · Mar 2006
High quality acute care for the severely injured is not consistently available in England, Wales and Northern Ireland: report of a survey by the Trauma Committee, The Royal College of Surgeons of England.
A survey was undertaken to determine the extent to which acute hospitals in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were meeting the acute trauma management standards published in 2000 by The Royal College of Surgeons of England and the British Orthopaedic Association. ⋯ The findings of this survey suggest that high quality care for the severely injured is not available consistently across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and appear to justify concerns about the ability of the NHS to deal effectively with the current trauma workload and the consequences of a major incident.