Articles: pandemics.
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Curr Opin Anaesthesiol · Apr 2024
ReviewBroadening the scope and rising to the occasion, an opportunity for anaesthesiologists to take the lead in healthcare quality & patient safety (again).
The landscape of healthcare is characterized by high demands and scarce human and financial resources. This calls for action in improving healthcare quality. This review shows how anaesthesiologists are the designated medical specialist to share their affinity and knowledge in quality and safety, throughout the hospital and across the care continuum. ⋯ Anaesthesiologist are early adapters of patient safety. In the last decades anaesthesia has become linked with patient safety and the quality of care. With the recent transition from peroperative to perioperative care; new opportunities are emerging, expanding our professional scope. Unfortunately, the anaesthesiologist is not often positioned in a leading role in quality of care and patient safety. After a brief rise during the COVID-19 pandemic, in which anaesthesiologists were visible in the frontline in many countries, we have unfortunately disappeared from the spotlight. This review shows numerous ideas, examples, and a framework how a leading position can be realized.
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The potential benefit of videolaryngoscopy use in facilitating tracheal intubation has already been established, however its use was actively encouraged during the COVID-19 pandemic as it was likely to improve intubation success and increase the patient-operator distance. ⋯ Videolaryngoscopy use increased following the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic but this was less than might have been expected.
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Acute abdominal pain in paediatric patients is a common presentation to the Emergency Department (ED). The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the health care sector leading to a decline in hospital attendance. ⋯ The COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on the presentation, investigations and admission rates of abdominal pain in the ED. Our study highlights the need for increased awareness of severe abdominal pain signs and symptoms in paediatric patients and importance for diagnostic accuracy. Improving patient flow through the ED and having clear guidelines for staff and parents can optimise clinical practice and improve patient outcomes.