Emergency
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Opinions Evolve Regarding When to Ventilate a COVID-19 Patient
While there is no consensus on the issue, there are physicians from the frontlines in New York who now favor performing more noninvasive ventilation. Some are trying to avoid using a ventilator at all.
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Smaller EDs Should Treat Lower-Acuity Patients Outside the Hospital
A California-based hospital set up an area in its parking lot to screen for COVID-19. Many people who arrive are low acuity (i.e., looking for a test, showing no signs of the virus, and can be treated in their cars). Still, the facility is prepared to admit high-acuity patients who may need more complex care inside the facility.
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Prepare to Ramp Up Quickly, Treat All Patients as if They Have COVID-19
Prepare for a rapid escalation of cases as soon as evidence of community spread of COVID-19 emerges. At this point, assume everyone is carrying the virus, and act accordingly.
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Rule No. 1: Take Care of Staff
There is no denying the fear and anxiety that frontline staff are experiencing as they race to care for COVID-19 patients. Employees are living in personal protective equipment, and they are witnessing people of all ages go through terrible courses of illness. In one New York-based facility, leaders formed “code lavender” teams for instances in which staff members may have seen or been involved with some type of crisis.
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Plan for a Range of Demand Scenarios
When preparing for any disaster, plan for a range of scenarios, including worst case. Determine where beds and staff will come from under the direst of circumstances. Use predictive modeling to anticipate daily care needs and identify alternative locations where patients could be relocated if the community demand reaches a boiling point.
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Leveraging Hospital Incident Command to Battle COVID-19
Frontline providers battling COVID-19 in New York, where the outbreak may go down as the worst in the United States, share the latest updates and techniques that are paying dividends.
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Poll: COVID-19 Leads Some Americans to Delay Medical Care
Nearly one-third of respondents said they are avoiding care over fears of contracting the virus.
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Understanding Medical Marijuana
This article will evaluate and assess medical marijuana, also called medical cannabis, and will cover benefits and risks, clinical considerations affecting its recommendation, and currently available evidence.
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Antibiotic Therapy to Reduce the Incidence of Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia After Cardiac Arrest
In this prospective, randomized trial, intravenous amoxicillin-clavulanate (dosed three times daily and given for two days) administered to patients admitted with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest due to a shockable rhythm reduced the incidence of early ventilator-associated pneumonia.
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Maximal Lung Recruitment Strategy Does Not Reduce Ventilator-Free Days in the Setting of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
In this randomized trial, daily maximal recruitment trials failed to reduce ventilator-free days in the setting of acute respiratory distress syndrome, but increased the risk of cardiovascular adverse effects.