Irish journal of medical science
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The global SARS-CoV-2 pandemic placed Irish Laboratory Medicine services under sustained and massive strain. Rapid reconfiguration was required to introduce new assays at high capacity for diagnosis and monitoring of COVID-19, while maintaining existing services. ⋯ This study confirms an agile and resilient response to the COVID-19 pandemic from Ireland's Laboratory Medicine services despite many economic and staffing challenges.
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Recent research has demonstrated discrepancies in care post-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), showing that women often have delays in time to percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and are less often prescribed evidence-based medications for secondary prevention. This single-centre study evaluated gender differences in management and local prescribing patterns of STEMI patients on discharge consistent with implicit bias, benchmarked against Australian clinical guidelines. ⋯ Our study identified excellent adherence with recommended guidelines, challenging recent data both internationally and from the Victorian Cardiac Outcomes Registry (VCOR). Pharmacological and revascularisation management post-STEMI for both male and female patients was equal, suggesting implicit bias is not universal and may be institutional. Health services should evaluate their practices to identify sources of implicit bias, which may influence their management of women presenting with a STEMI.
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The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated an enforced 8-week induction period (18 May to 12 July 2020) for all new interns in Ireland. These unprecedented circumstances presented a unique opportunity to assess this induction period. ⋯ The COVID-19 pandemic has inadvertently identified a model of internship induction that benefits interns, their colleagues and their patients through the production of more technically capable interns.
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This cross-sectional study sought to establish the prevalence of homelessness amongst inpatients in two psychiatric units in Ireland and explore the perceived relationship between psychiatric illness and homelessness. ⋯ Homelessness affects a significant number of psychiatric patients and can be both a contributory factor to, and consequence of, mental illness. With homelessness at unprecedented levels, there is a need for the development of tailored programmes aimed at supporting these vulnerable groups.
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Observational Study
The impact of COVID-19 on acute urinary stone presentations: a single-centre experience.
The COVID-19 pandemic has seen a change in the numbers of patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with non-COVID symptoms, resulting in delayed presentations of many medical and surgical conditions. ⋯ The COVID-19 pandemic did not result in fewer or sicker patients presenting with acute ureteric colic cases to the ED.