Emergency medicine journal : EMJ
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An emergency care practitioner (ECP) is a generic practitioner drawn mainly from paramedic and nursing backgrounds. ECPs receive formal training and extended clinical skills to equip them to work as an integral part of the healthcare team working within and across traditional boundaries of emergency and unplanned care. Currently, ECPs are working in different healthcare settings in the UK. ⋯ Care provided by ECPs appears to reduce the need for subsequent referral to other emergency and unscheduled care services in a large proportion of cases. We found no evidence that the care provided by an ECP was less appropriate than the care by the usual providers for the same type of health problem.
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We report on a young adult with a foreign body lodged in the right main bronchus for at least 5 days, with no alleged recollection of aspiration despite the size and shape of the object, which was removed successfully by rigid bronchoscopy.
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Subarachnoid haemorrhage can be a massively debilitating condition with long-term repercussions. The "classic" presentation of sudden-onset severe headache normally raises suspicions. ⋯ We report on a 52-year-old man who presented with a 1-day history of progressively worsening right-sided neck pain spreading to the chest with associated symptoms of autonomic dysfunction. After initial stabilisation, the patient's Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score declined, with subsequent CT scan showing an extensive subarachnoid haemorrhage.
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The wrist is the most commonly injured joint in the body. However, wrist injuries are often missed in the emergency department (ED). If the fracture is not diagnosed and remains untreated, the patient runs a considerable risk of chronic disability. The utility of CT as an aid in the diagnosis of carpal bone fracture was investigated. ⋯ Emergency physicians should consider CT of the wrist after plain radiography when patients with suspected carpal fracture show normal radiographic findings.