Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Medication errors are frequent in the emergency department (ED). The unique operating characteristics of the ED may exacerbate their rate and severity. They are associated with variable clinical outcomes that range from inconsequential to death. ⋯ The capability for dispensing medication, without surveillance by a pharmacist, provides an error-producing condition to which physicians and nurses should be especially vigilant. Except in very limited and defined situations, physicians should not administer medications. Adherence to defined roles would reduce the team communication errors that are a common theme in the cases described here.
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Comparative Study
Repeat patients to the emergency department in a statewide database.
To describe the epidemiology of repeat users of the emergency department (ED) using a statewide database. ⋯ Due to the high turnover in serial patients, control groups in future studies are necessary to evaluate interventions aimed at decreasing serial ED use. The likelihood of serial ED users to use multiple EDs indicates that those studying serial ED use should collect data from multiple EDs.
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Clinical Trial
Resident-performed compression ultrasonography for the detection of proximal deep vein thrombosis: fast and accurate.
To assess whether emergency medicine residents (EMRs) could quickly perform accurate compression ultrasonography (CUS) for the detection of proximal lower extremity deep vein thromboses (PLEDVTs) with minimal training. ⋯ Emergency medicine residents with limited US experience were able to quickly perform CUS after minimal training for the detection of PLEDVT in a select group of patients.
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Emergency medicine (EM) is a popular specialty for medical students choosing a career. Many attend medical schools without an affiliated EM residency and lack both the formal mentorship and informal guidance provided by medical school advisors (or faculty) involved in an accredited EM training program. Others desire specialized advice based on geographic or specific academic interest. ⋯ The implementation of the virtual advisor program enabled medical students to have access to experienced EM faculty career mentors.