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As ED overcrowding becomes more widespread, the companion problem of ambulance diversion becomes increasingly acute at EDs across the nation.
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Online posts often contain more data than were really intended, says Michael Blaivas, MD, RDMS, professor of emergency medicine in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Northside Hospital Forsyth in Cumming, GA, and patients may be able to pick themselves out.
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With some hospitals being designated as demonstrating excellence in the care of stroke patients, does this mean a patient can successfully sue the ED if he or she is not treated at one of those facilities?
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If there was the potential for a better outcome if a patient was transferred, and the patient was harmed and can show that you breached the standard of care, a successful lawsuit could result, says Michael Blaivas, MD, RDMS, professor of emergency medicine in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Northside Hospital Forsyth in Cumming, GA.
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Today, it is standard practice for attorneys to do an Internet search on any adverse party and witness, according to Robert D. Kreisman, a medical malpractice attorney with Kreisman Law Offices in Chicago.
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A lawsuit involving a terrible outcome, but good emergency department (ED) care, seemed "very defensible" to Matthew Rice, MD, JD, FACEP, former senior vice president and chief medical officer at Northwest Emergency Physicians of TEAMHealth in Federal Way, WA. Rice was about to recommend that the hospital vigorously defend the case, but it never got to that point.
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If you forget to tell an inpatient nurse that your ED patient has an allergy or was given a certain medication, the consequences could be dire.
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According to a recent study in the Annals of Emergency Medicine, thorough hand washing might be the most cost-effective way to reduce the spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in the ED.
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Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) infections are on the rise, with an estimated 500,000 cases in hospitals and nursing homes each year and increased mortality rates, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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An elder woman brought by ambulance from an extended care facility was awake and oriented, but didn't know her medications or even the facility's name and phone number, recalls Donna Sparks, MSN, RN, CEN, director of emergency services at Baptist Hospital Miami (FL).