After a lawsuit is filed alleging poor care of a boarded patient is not the time to figure out who was legally responsible.
Two of the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP)'s policies address the issue of who is responsible for inpatients being held in EDs. The October 2007 policy, "Responsibility for Admitted Patients" recognizes that the patient benefits when there is a clear delineation of who is responsible for the patient's care.
William Sullivan, DO, JD, FACEP, director of emergency services at St. Margaret's Hospital in Spring Valley, IL, and a practicing attorney, helped an ED physician defend a case involving a patient who died after being boarded in the ED for more than 5 hours. The ED physician stated that the admitting physician accepted responsibility for the patient. The admitting physician denied responsibility since the patient was not admitted to the floor.
Debate exists over the use of certain medications in rapid sequence induction (RSI) for critically ill patients requiring intubation.
Fever has been recognized as a symptom of illness for centuries. It is especially concerning when it is associated with a young infant.