Emergency Medicine

What happens to older patients who spend the night in the emergency department awaiting a ward bed? This appraisal examines a prospective cohort study linking overnight ED stays with in-hospital mortality, while considering confounding and the importance of comfort and dignity.

A review of an observational study comparing mechanical and manual CPR during in-hospital cardiac arrest. The appraisal examines survival outcomes and why patient selection, confounding and the timing of mechanical CPR make the results difficult to interpret.

In our modern world global health is vitally and increasingly important. Anisa Jafar takes us through a project designed to connect and map global health practitioners. Follow the links and join the network.

An updated overview of decompensated liver disease in the emergency department, covering assessment, investigation and the search for a precipitating cause. It discusses infection, bleeding, kidney injury, encephalopathy and escalation of care, with the WAVES mnemonic to organise the approach.

A personal selection of recent papers prepared for the 2024 emergency medicine update in Whistler. The appraisals cover airway management, major haemorrhage and cardiac arrest, exploring what the findings might mean for practice and where uncertainty remains.