Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
-
To characterize ambulance utilization in a pediatric population and pediatric emergency physicians' judgement of the medical need for ambulance transport. ⋯ Most pediatric ambulance transports in this sample, which excluded patients requiring immediate resuscitation or trauma team care, were judged to be medically unnecessary. Caregivers often use an ambulance as a convenience or as the only means of transportation. An alternate, less resource-intensive transportation system may be more appropriate for this population.
-
To determine the optimal initial depth of tube placement in nasotracheal intubation (NTI) of adult patients, measured at the naris, prior to obtaining a chest radiograph (CXR). ⋯ Initial placement of NTI at 26 cm in women and 28 cm in men, measured at the naris, resulted in adequate initial placement for most adult patients.