The second instalment of this ethics series revisits a fictional rescue dilemma through the trolley problem and the four pillars of medical ethics. It explores intentions, consequences, action and omission, and asks why apparently similar choices can provoke very different moral judgements.
How often do we tell our emergency department colleagues that their work matters? This reflection explores the value of gratitude during demanding shifts and offers simple ways to make thanks sincere, specific and part of everyday team culture.
The opening instalment of an emergency medicine ethics series presents a deliberately extreme, fictional rescue dilemma. It asks readers to weigh saving several lives against actively causing one death, using the thought experiment to begin a wider discussion about the ethics behind clinical decisions.
Philosophy of Emergency Medicine
A SMACC 2013 presentation on risk in emergency medicine, with a video and accompanying slides. Its deliberately provocative outline challenges how clinicians think about diagnosis, uncertainty and the risks they take in everyday practice.
Conference ReportsCritical Care
Simon Carley’s SMACC 2013 talk challenges the fear that can delay intervention when general emergency physicians treat critically ill children. The written introduction explains its provocative title, its focus on resuscitation skills and the fictional cases used to stimulate debate.
A personal review of the Essence of Emergency Medicine course in 2013, led by Cliff Reid and colleagues. The account focuses on human factors, learning openly from mistakes, taking responsibility and advocating for patients when systems make good care difficult.
Practical perspectives on trauma care and team leadership.
Explore the series →