Annals of emergency medicine
-
One hundred forty-one medical schools were surveyed to determine the emergency medicine core content topics and skills being taught in the curricula. Responses were obtained from 96 schools through two mailings and a telephone followup. Most topics surveyed were offered in the vast majority of medical schools (greater than 92%) with the exception of emergency medical services (offered in 79% of schools). ⋯ The survey showed a similar pattern of these skills being offered in most schools, but required in a smaller number. For example, while C-spine immobilization is taught in 90% of schools, it is required in only 46%. Educators must consider a coherent, interdisciplinary knowledge base and skills list for their medical school curricula.
-
Sudden unexpected death is a traumatic event for surviving family and friends. When the survivors learn of their loss, they react with turmoil and disbelief. ⋯ To provide emergency staff with guidelines, we review the dynamics of grief and discuss intervention in the following six phases: contacting the survivors; arrival of the survivors; notification of death; the grief response; viewing the body; and the concluding process. We conclude with a discussion of intervention with children.
-
In the 1950s, researchers devised the best methods of ventilation. In the 1960s, a method of maintaining circulation and ventilation simultaneously was introduced. In the 1970s, refinements of the understanding of the mechanisms of blood flow during CPR were defined and were accompanied by an aggressive research effort to identify means to improve brain protection during and after cardiac arrest. It is hoped that the fruits of this work will lead to knowledge of better ways to effect resuscitation and will maximize the quality of life in survivors of cardiac arrest.
-
To determine the status of undergraduate education in emergency medicine, questionnaires were sent to 141 medical schools. Of the 135 schools responding, 15.2% require emergency medicine courses in the fourth year (mean, 164 hours); 11.9% require these courses (average, 84 hours) in the third year. Emergency medicine is offered in 21.8% of second-year and 37.9% of first-year curriculums. ⋯ Osteopathic schools require more time for emergency medicine in the clinical years but less time in formal lectures. Schools with a residency program in emergency medicine more frequently offer emergency medicine in the preclinical years. This survey provides some basic data on the status of undergraduate emergency medicine education in medical school curriculums, and it encourages medical educators to review the undergraduate curriculum to ensure that students receive adequate exposure to the essentials of emergency medicine.