Human Factors

What distinguishes burnout from exhaustion? This article and accompanying podcast explore emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and personal accomplishment, alongside the challenges of measuring burnout and the workplace conditions that shape it.

Iain Beardsell shares lessons from ten years of trauma team leadership, based on his 2022 RCEM CPD presentation. The post follows preparation, patient arrival and progression towards definitive care, with an emphasis on communication, checklists, practice and feedback.

Iain and Simon revisit highlights from the St Emlyn's blog in December 2021. The episode combines the monthly round-up with reflections on the year and a look ahead to 2022.

How should emergency care respond when demand exceeds available resources? Drawing on civilian and military experience, Simon Horne explores the tension between capacity and quality, arguing for honest priorities, less low-value activity and reliable delivery of the best care resources allow.

Can cardiac output help explain patient flow? This article uses preload, contractility and afterload as a metaphor for arrivals, staff and resources, and exit block, showing why changes to one part of urgent care must account for the whole system.

Joke Van kerkhoven draws on emergency medicine and elite sport to explore leading yourself under pressure. Written during COVID-19, this practical reflection covers mindset, breathing, planning and recovery, with ways to prepare for difficult situations and learn from them afterwards.