Der Anaesthesist
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Stress is an integral part of the daily routine among healthcare workers in anesthesiology and emergency medicine. ⋯ Research in aviation and psychology has provided various tools to improve performance during stressful events and should be taken into consideration for routine daily use.
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Emergency sonography encompasses a number of targeted sonographic investigation techniques, which allow a quick response to frequently occurring situations arising in anesthesiology, including intensive care and emergency medicine. Emergency sonography supports point of care diagnostics to clarify the possible causes of hemodynamic and respiratory instability, e.g. to determine the extent of intra-abdominal bleeding in a still compensated patient with multiple trauma and to support interventions, such as pleural fluid drainage. ⋯ In comparison to conventional sonographic examination techniques, these techniques are used with reduced examination times and a focussed assessment of specific clinical problems. By means of a few standardized cross-sectional planes, numerous questions can be quickly addressed and therapeutic consequences can be deduced.
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Approximately 18 million patients are treated in German hospitals annually. On the basis of internationally published data the number of in-hospital cardiac arrests can be estimated as 54,000 per year. A structured treatment of in-hospital resuscitation according to the current scientific evidence is essential. ⋯ The prevention of cardiac arrest is of special importance. Uniform and low threshold criteria for alarming the medical emergency team have to be defined to be able to identify and treat critically ill patients in time before cardiac arrest occurs.