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Classically, pneumonia is defined as an infection of the lung parenchyma. However, worldwide, a variety of definitions exist, including fever, hypoxia, a constellation of other clinical symptoms, and radiologic findings. In pediatric and adolescent populations, early diagnosis will assist emergency department (ED) physicians with correctly managing and subsequently avoiding potential morbidity and mortality of this common infectious disease.
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Penetrating abdominal trauma (PAT) has the potential to be a devastating injury and ranks in the top 15 causes of death for all ages. This article will define the problem of PAT and review the initial management, including the ability to identify, resuscitate, and initiate treatment in patients with unstable PAT prior to their transfer to the operating room (OR).
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Approximately one in five of children evaluated in the emergency department (ED) are physically abused. Emergency physicians (EPs) have a responsibility to consider abuse in the differential of every injured child.
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If a lawsuit is filed alleging malpractice in your ED, the only thing worse for your defense than not having a policy covering an important subject might be having one but failing to adhere to it.
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Ryan R. Domengeaux, JD, vice president of risk management at Schumacher Group in Lafayette, LA, says, "Policies and procedures are not only driven by statutory requirements, they are also necessary to memorialize service expectations."
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If a boy is brought to an emergency department after being injured in an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) accident while at a friend's house, do triage nurses wait to get in touch with the parents before treating him?
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Jurors might be able to understand the fact that patients can't always be treated immediately in a busy ED, particularly if a plaintiff didn't have obviously life-threatening symptoms at the time.
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An ED's policy may state that reassessments should occur every 30 minutes, or that EKGs should be given within 10 minutes of the patient's arrival, but there will always be circumstances in which these timeframes aren't met.
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When experts on either side of a lawsuit alleging ED malpractice make misleading or false statements, this reflects badly on the whole legal system, according to Ken Zafren, MD, FAAEM, FACEP, FAWM, EMS medical director for the state of Alaska and clinical associate professor in the Division of Emergency Medicine at Stanford (CA) University Medical Center.
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If a parent objects to a medical evaluation or treatment of a child with a potentially life-threatening emergency, due to religious beliefs or any other reason, says Kevin M. Klauer, DO, EJD, FACEP, chief medical officer of Emergency Medicine Physicians in Canton, OH, the emergency physician (EP) can get a court order to get the child treated.
