Emergency medicine journal : EMJ
-
To profile casualties of UK remote and rural sport and recreation rescued by Mountain Rescue Teams (MRTs). ⋯ Volunteer rescue teams assisted a wide range of casualties including some with serious multiple injuries. The nature of casualty rescues undertaken in Scotland was similar to that in England and Wales. The results have implications for UK-wide rescue team training, medical professionals receiving casualties and for outdoor education safety initiatives.
-
The delivery of high quality emergency medicine ideally involves input from senior doctors 24 h a day. This study aims to assess the influence of 'real-time' senior clinician supervision on patient disposition from a UK emergency department. ⋯ Senior doctor input in patient care in the ED adds accuracy to disposition decisions, impacting on patient safety and improving departmental flow.
-
There is growing interest in the safety of oxygen therapy in emergency patients. A Cochrane review of oxygen versus air for patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) showed a potentially important, but statistically non-significant, increase in mortality (RR 3.03 (95% CI 0.93 to 9.83)) and concluded a definitive randomised controlled trial (RCT) was needed. ⋯ Widespread belief in the benefit of oxygen in AMI may make it difficult to persuade funders of the importance of this issue and health professionals to participate in enrolling patients into a trial in which oxygen would be withheld from half their patients.