Emergency Medicine

Janos Baombe shares experience-based suggestions for preparing for night shifts, coping during them and recovering afterwards. The post covers sleep, food, caffeine, breaks, team interactions and getting home safely, while recognising that clinicians need to find an approach that fits their own circumstances.

An introductory 2015 overview of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents for emergency clinicians. The post considers recognising unusual presentations, triage, broad patterns of exposure and sources of specialist help, encouraging further preparation rather than presenting itself as a complete incident-management guide.

This December 2015 update introduces the James Lind Alliance’s emergency medicine priority-setting partnership with the Royal College of Emergency Medicine. The post and accompanying podcast explain an effort to bring patients, carers and clinicians together to identify important unanswered research questions.

How can emergency and critical care teams support families facing tragedy at Christmas while caring for themselves? Liz Crowe explores acknowledging grief, responding to the contrast with celebrations at home and helping colleagues make the transition between work and family life, with an accompanying podcast.

Chris Gray reports from the 2015 London Cardiac Arrest Symposium, covering adrenaline, care after resuscitation, mechanical CPR and survivors’ experiences. This conference archive captures the questions and uncertainties discussed at the time, before the results of the PARAMEDIC2 trial were available.

A 2015 introduction to chemsex for emergency clinicians, exploring drug use in sexual settings, patients’ reasons for attending and the importance of sensitive assessment. The article emphasises non-judgemental conversations, confidentiality, specialist advice and appropriate follow-up, including opportunities to disclose non-consensual experiences.