Singap Med J
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Practice Guideline
Ministry of Health Clinical Practice Guidelines: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) has updated the Clinical Practice Guidelines on Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) to provide doctors and patients in Singapore with evidence-based treatment for COPD. This article reproduces the introduction and executive summary (with recommendations from the guidelines) from the MOH Clinical Practice Guidelines on COPD, for the information of SMJ readers. ⋯ The recommendations should be used with reference to the full text of the guidelines. Following this article are multiple choice questions based on the full text of the guidelines.
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The cross Kirschner wire (K-wire) configuration in closed reduction and percutaneous pinning of paediatric supracondylar humeral fracture affords superior stability. However, medial pin placement presents a risk of iatrogenic ulnar nerve injury. This study describes, in step-by-step detail, another safe method of percutaneous medial pin insertion. ⋯ This safe method of medial pin placement for surgical stabilisation of paediatric supracondylar humeral fractures is easily learnt and reproducible, and produces excellent results.
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Practice Guideline
Ministry of Health Clinical Practice Guidelines: Hypertension.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) has updated the clinical practice guidelines on hypertension to provide doctors and patients in Singapore with evidence-based treatment for hypertension. This article reproduces the introduction and executive summary (with recommendations from the guidelines) from the MOH clinical practice guidelines on hypertension, for the information of SMJ readers. ⋯ The recommendations should be used with reference to the full text of the guidelines. Following this article are multiple choice questions based on the full text of the guidelines.
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This study was a descriptive analysis of national ambulance case records and aimed to make practical safety recommendations in order to reduce the incidence of drowning in swimming pools. ⋯ To our knowledge, this study was the first in Singapore to examine data from emergency medical services. Since the majority of incidents occurred in private pools without lifeguards, it is recommended that a lifeguard be present at every pool. For pools that are too small to justify mandatory lifeguard presence, safety measures, such as guidelines for pool design and pool fencing with latched gates, may be considered. As strict enforcement may not be possible, public education and parental vigilance remain vital.
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Empathy and burnout are two entities that are important in a physician's career. They are likely to relate to each other and can be heavily influenced by surrounding factors, such as medical education, local practices and cultural expectations. To our knowledge, empathy and burnout studies have not been performed in Singapore. This study was designed to evaluate empathy and burnout levels using the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy (JSPE) and Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) among residents in Singapore, and compare them with the United States (US) literature. ⋯ Residents in Singapore had lower empathy and higher burnout scores compared to the US literature. Further research into the underlying cause is imperative to guide intervention.