Pneumothorax

Discuss

• The breathless patient: act, assess, reassess

  Lesson plan · Induction · Early-career EM · Preparation about 15 min · 45-minute session · 30-minute option · Paired practice available

  Discuss initial care for breathlessness, oxygen targets and the different options for a stable pneumothorax.

  Learner preparationFacilitator guide

• Assessing acute breathlessness

  Lesson plan · Medical students · Preparation about 12 min · 45-minute session · 30-minute option · Paired practice available

  Recognise respiratory compromise and compare acute heart failure with pneumothorax without relying on age or a single measurement.

  Learner preparationFacilitator guide

• Interpreting chest X-rays

  Lesson plan · Early-career EM · Preparation about 18 min · 45-minute session · 30-minute option

  Review five chest X-rays and discuss how the findings change the next clinical decision.

  Learner preparationFacilitator guide

Practise

One learner performs. One checks the key steps and gives feedback. Then swap roles. These are practice tools, not official RCEM mark schemes.

• Respiratory examination

  Paired practice · FRCEM

  Practise comparing the chest examination findings discussed in the stable pneumothorax case. This is not an emergency-treatment checklist.

• Respiratory examination

  Paired practice · MLA

  Practise comparing the chest examination findings discussed in the stable pneumothorax case. This is not an emergency-treatment checklist.

Teaching programmes

• Starting in Emergency Medicine

  Teaching programme

  1 relevant session in this programme.

• Early-career Emergency Medicine

  Teaching programme

  2 relevant sessions in this programme.

• Medical Student Emergency Medicine Placement

  Teaching programme

  1 relevant session in this programme.