Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Malnutrition is a potentially remediable condition that when untreated contributes to poor health and economic outcomes. While assessment of malnutrition risk is improving, its identification rate and economic burden in emergency departments (EDs) is largely unknown. We sought to determine prevalence and economic burden of diagnosed malnutrition among patients presenting to U.S. EDs. ⋯ While malnutrition is currently diagnosed at a low rate in U.S. EDs, the economic burden of malnutrition is substantial in this care setting. Given the potential for systematic malnutrition screening and treatment protocols to alleviate this burden, future research is warranted.
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A better understanding of the factors affecting client engagement in hospital-based violence intervention programs (HVIPs), and which types of client needs prove most challenging to achieve, may be of key importance in developing novel, targeted strategies to violence intervention. In this study, we examined the demographics and injury characteristics of violently injured patients by their level of engagement with the Boston Violence Intervention Advocacy Program (VIAP) and determined the degree of client goal achievement through VIAP client services. ⋯ This study demonstrates that VIAP is effectively engaging the client population that HVIPs have been designed to support. HVIPs should consider novel strategies to engage vulnerable populations not typically targeted by intervention programs. These results speak to the difficulties of program attrition and the complexities of altering the life course for victims of violence.
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The objective was to provide a longitudinal assessment of anxiety levels and work and home concerns of U.S. emergency physicians during the COVID-19 pandemic. ⋯ While exposure to suspected COVID-19 patients was nearly universal, stress levels in emergency physicians decreased with time. At both initial and follow-up assessments, women were more likely to test positive on the PC-PTSD-5 screener compared to men.
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Despite concern that the global pandemic will worsen depression and suicide rates, there remain little data on its actual effect. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicidal ingestions reported to the California Poison Control System (CPCS). ⋯ Despite concern for worsening suicidality, calls regarding suicidal ingestions to the nation's largest poison control center decreased during the COVID era compared to the pre-COVID era. This study provides evidence that the pandemic's effects on modern society remain difficult to predict. Further effort is needed to understand how pandemic will affect American's mental health.
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Previous literature demonstrates increased mortality for traumatic brain injury (TBI) with transfer to a Level II versus Level I trauma center. Our objective was to determine the effect of the most recent American College of Surgeons-Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT) "Resources for the Optimal Care of the Injured Patient" resources manual ("The Orange Book") on outcomes after severe TBI after interfacility transfer to Level I versus Level II center. ⋯ There is no mortality discrepancy in patients with isolated TBI transferred to a Level II versus Level I center despite previous contrary evidence and thus no reason to bypass a Level II in favor of a Level I. This relative improvement potentially relates to the new requirements as defined in the latest version of the ACS-COT's resources manual.