Could ROTEM help identify coagulation problems beyond trauma patients in the resuscitation room? This 2014 journal club reviews a small study in hypovolaemic shock, examining recruitment difficulties, the distinction between correlation and agreement, and the limits of an early proof-of-concept study.
JC. ROTEM for ED coagulopathy detection. St.Emlyn’s Read More
A short reading guide to two reviews of resuscitation research from 2013. The linked papers cover topics ranging from cardiac arrest prevention, basic life support and education to advanced life support, post-resuscitation care, prognostication and cardiac arrest centres.
JC: Rapid update on the resus pearls of 2013. St.Emlyn’s Read More
A 2014 journal club examines falling severe-sepsis mortality across Australian and New Zealand intensive care units between 2000 and 2012. It asks what improving outcomes might tell us about the whole package of care, while distinguishing historical comparisons from evidence for any single treatment.
JC: What has an awesome NNT of 5.8 for severe sepsis? St.Emlyn’s Read More
What can elite cycling and Formula One teach an emergency department about improvement? This reflection explores marginal gains: finding small weaknesses in everyday processes and addressing them consistently, rather than relying entirely on the next dramatic advance in resuscitation.
Marginal gains, Matt Parker, F1 and the ED. St.Emlyn’s Read More
An initial response to the 2014 ProCESS trial of protocolised sepsis care. The post asks how changing background care, differences between patient populations and widespread adoption of resuscitation principles might affect the interpretation of a trial that challenged early goal-directed therapy.
JC: Is Early Goal Directed Therapy dead? St.Emlyn’s Read More
A musical contribution to SMACC’s FOAMaoke tradition, celebrating free, open-access medical education and sharing knowledge across professional boundaries. This 2014 post introduces a playful adaptation of Imagine and provides the words for conference colleagues to join in.
Could a shorter acetylcysteine infusion make treatment for paracetamol poisoning easier to tolerate? This 2014 journal club examines a randomised trial of an accelerated regimen, separating findings about nausea and infusion reactions from the larger question of effectiveness in preventing serious liver injury.
JC: Should we halve the time of acetylcysteine infusions for Paracetamol OD? St.Emlyn’s Read More
An invitation from 2014 to bring clinical questions to the SMACC Gold evidence-based medicine workshop. The post introduces three-part questions and links to resources on searching, critical appraisal, statistics and using journal clubs to turn questions into shared evidence summaries.
Time to place your #SMACCGold #SMACCBETS at the St.Emlyn’s Casino Read More
