Articles: emergency-services.
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Multicenter Study
Derivation of a clinical prediction score for the diagnosis of clinically significant symptomatic carotid artery disease.
Emergent vascular imaging identifies a subset of patients requiring immediate specialized care (i.e. carotid stenosis > 50%, dissection or free-floating thrombus). However, most TIA patients do not have these findings, so it is inefficient to image all TIA patients in crowded emergency departments (ED). Our objectives were to derive and internally validate a clinical prediction score for clinically significant carotid artery disease in TIA patients. ⋯ This simple score can predict carotid artery disease in TIA patients using readily available information. It identifies low-risk patients who can defer vascular imaging to an outpatient or specialty clinic setting. Medium-risk patients may undergo imaging immediately or with slight delay, depending on local resources. High-risk patients should undergo urgent vascular imaging.
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Observational Study
Measurement of Cost of Boarding in the Emergency Department Using Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing.
Boarding admitted patients in emergency departments (EDs) is a national crisis that is worsening despite potential financial disadvantages. The objective of this study was to assess costs associated with boarding. ⋯ Using advanced cost-accounting methods, our investigation provides novel evidence that boarding of admitted patients is financially costly, adding greater urgency for elimination of this practice.
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Observational Study
Rapid Electroencephalography and Artificial Intelligence in the Detection and Management of Nonconvulsive Seizures.
Nonconvulsive status epilepticus is a commonly overlooked cause of altered mental status. This study assessed nonconvulsive status epilepticus prevalence in emergency department (ED) patients with acute neurologic presentations using limited electroencephalogram (EEG) coupled with artificial intelligence (AI)-enhanced seizure detection technology. We then compared the accuracy of the AI EEG interpretations to those performed by an epileptologist. ⋯ Limited AI-enhanced EEG can detect nonconvulsive status epilepticus in the ED; however, the technology tended to overestimate seizure burden in our cohort. This study found a lower nonconvulsive status epilepticus prevalence compared to prior literature reports.
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Pediatric emergency care · Oct 2024
Developing a Mental Health Screening Questionnaire in an Asian Children's Hospital Emergency Setting.
Mental health concerns among adolescents are increasingly prevalent, yet underrecognized. Adolescents with psychological distress often present to the emergency department (ED) with somatic symptoms. Due to inadequate time for rapport building and lack of familiarity of ED clinicians with psychosocial evaluation, these concerns often get missed. We describe the development and implementation of the Youth Well Being (YWB) questionnaire, a self-administered psychosocial screening tool that aims to overcome the communication barriers to psychosocial evaluation. ⋯ The YWB questionnaire is the first initiative in Singapore to enable efficient psychosocial screening of at-risk adolescents in the ED. This communication tool can potentially be used in other health care settings to enable early recognition and intervention for adolescents distressed by psychosocial problems.
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Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2024
Observational StudyThe effect of an extended-hours ED clinical pharmacy service on admission medication prescribing errors.
The aim of this study was to determine the effect of a 7-day extended-hours clinical pharmacy service in the ED on medication prescribing errors upon hospital admission and time to medication reconciliation. ⋯ The 7-day extended-hours ED clinical pharmacy service was associated with a reduction in medication prescribing errors in high-needs patients and improved time to BPMH and medication reconciliation.