Resuscitation

The St Emlyn’s team looks back on 2018 through changes in clinical practice, memorable research, books, blogs and podcasts. Alongside personal highlights and experiences, contributors share what they learned and the people and ideas they were watching as 2019 began.

Why did mortality remain so high among hypotensive patients needing emergency trauma laparotomy? Rich Carden’s 2018 discussion examines earlier studies, delays to surgery and damage control care, then explains the need for more detailed data and the planned TELA audit.

Revisit the November 2018 St Emlyn’s podcast roundup and its accompanying reading list. Linked posts explore cognitive load, learning in the social age, a medical elective in South Africa and cardiac arrest care, with further reflections from the FemInEM Ideas Exchange.

The final day of the Intensive Care Society’s 2018 meeting brought together research updates and questions about the outcomes patients value. This report covers frailty, predictive technology, delirium and organ donation, alongside reflections on careful clinical care and the limits of simple solutions.

Day two of the Intensive Care Society’s 2018 meeting ranged from research and radiology to debates about liver failure and airway management. The report also explores nutrition, the timing of renal replacement therapy and how simulation and new technology might support learning.

What makes a clinical handover work when a critically ill patient arrives? Drawing on a 2018 Intensive Care Society presentation, this post explores preparation, team attention, structured communication and follow-up. It offers adaptable principles for sharing essential information while recognising that urgent treatment sometimes takes priority.