Journal of emergency nursing : JEN : official publication of the Emergency Department Nurses Association
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Immobilization of fractures with plaster of Paris is a mainstay of management of stable, nondisplaced fractures not requiring fixation. However, application techniques can be variable and are often ineffective after the patient is discharged because of weakness and wear of the plaster. This can lead to displacement of fractures and inadequate analgesia. We describe a simple, inexpensive, effective technique to ensure plaster strength and immobilization.
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Health information exchange holds the promise of sharing critical information about patients across organizations. We have found that emergency nurses have little or no involvement in using health information exchange and, often, they are not granted access by individual hospital policies. Yet, emergency nurses need to know this information and must have full access to health information exchange. We provide recommendations to ensure that emergency nurses are able to reach their full potential in using health information exchange to care for patients.