Leadership

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.

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.

Dr Youri Yordanov describes the emergency department response to the Paris attacks of 13 November 2015. This podcast introduction and accompanying resources focus on organising teams and caring for critically injured casualties arriving without warning at an already busy Saint Antoine hospital.

A personal reflection on looking after yourself during a career in emergency medicine. Janos Baombe shares ideas about rest, relationships, emotions, interests outside work and asking for help, explicitly presenting them as lessons from experience rather than an evidence-based mental health treatment guide.

Reflections on Roy Lilley’s presentation at the 2015 RCEM conference, including the gaps patients encounter between services. Simon Carley highlights the argument for designing care around patients’ needs, alongside a short video introduction and links to examples of healthcare innovation.

Why is ‘I don’t know’ so hard to say? Drawing on Think Like a Freak, this reflection explores intellectual humility, curiosity, reframing problems and seeking useful feedback, asking how ideas from outside medicine can help emergency clinicians recognise their limits and approach difficult decisions differently.