Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2020
ReviewReview article: Prevalence of burnout in paramedics: A systematic review of prevalence studies.
Paramedic wellness is an increasing priority within the profession. Burnout has been described as having areas of 'emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment'. Prevalence of burnout is unclear, hampering evaluation of protective initiatives. ⋯ Included studies were of low to moderate quality. The prevalence of burnout in paramedics varies from 16% to 56%. Existing evidence describing burnout in paramedics is weak; research of good methodological rigour is needed to quantify prevalence of burnout, providing a reliable baseline against which protective interventions could be measured.
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2020
Leadership challenges of directors of emergency medicine: An Australasian Delphi study.
Emergency medicine (EM) is an emerging profession with complex clinical and leadership demands. However, studies of leadership in EM are in their infancy. The present study makes a novel contribution to empirical research in this area by examining the leadership challenges faced by Australasian directors of emergency medicine (DEMs). ⋯ The recommendation for DEMs is that they need to engage in programmes which will support the development of the leadership and non-clinical skills required to enable them to cope with responsibilities of hybrid role of physician-leader. The development and delivery of specialised leadership programmes attuned to the hybridity of the director role and the complexity of hospitals is vital for ensuring high-quality patient care and successful running of EDs.
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2020
Clinician-led design for optimising flow: Seizing the opportunity for a new-build Australian Emergency Department.
A new ED build creates a unique opportunity to improve the way we provide clinical care. Often, the focus is primarily on increasing clinical cubicle numbers but this may have a negligible, or even negative impact on care delivery. ⋯ This relationship between clinicians and architects should remain collaborative but requires re-alignment. Independent, expert ED-specific designers can empower and provide valuable support for clinician-led design teams in their interactions with architects.
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EDs are noisy and the noise levels exceed regulatory recommendations. Noise distracts us during any task and can saturate our attentional demand and impair our thinking and decision-making. This is a systematic problem that is consistently ignored by accreditation bodies. ⋯ Noise is a patient safety issue, as excessive noise impairs good communication, which is essential for patient care. Good acoustic design and management is achievable, but needs to be explicitly assessed as a part of accreditation standards. This would promote wellness for both patients and staff.
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2020
Multicenter Study Observational StudyImaging and admission practices in paediatric head injury across emergency departments in Australia and New Zealand: A PREDICT study.
Variation in the management of paediatric head injury has been identified worldwide. This prospective study describes imaging and admission practices of children presenting with head injury across 10 hospital EDs in Australia and New Zealand. ⋯ Across the 10 largely tertiary EDs included in this study, the overall CTB rate was low with no significant variation between sites when adjusted for ciTBIs.