The Opioid Prescription Epidemic: Annals of EM Resident Perspectives article

opioid prescription epidemicMisuse of prescription opioids is one of the defining health problems of our generation.  The dramatic rise of opioid analgesic prescriptions in the US and Canada has been well documented, and opioids represent the most common cause of fatal prescription overdoses. On every shift, in every emergency department in the country, physicians struggle with the concerns of patients presenting with common pain complaints. Seeking to manage their patients’ symptoms in the face of dramatically rising prescription opioid misuse and fatal overdose, emergency physicians are  challenged to distinguish those who are simply seeking pain relief, those who are seeking opioid prescriptions due to addiction, and those who fit both categories. Emergency care providers are also charged with balancing the pressures of meeting clinical care and patient satisfaction goals while fulfilling our moral obligation to provide primary and secondary prevention of opioid misuse.

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By |2018-12-20T15:09:25-08:00Aug 11, 2014|Tox & Medications|

SimLIFE-EM Challenge: Add to the conversation

simLIFE-EM

Debriefings in medical simulation are meant to be the bow on top of the gift that is medical simulation. It is the ultimate delicious dessert, served after a grueling dinner course. All analogies aside, debriefings are meant to drive home the teaching points, to gain a deeper understanding of medical resuscitation as a group, and create mental frameworks of the approach to various patients. But this is often easier described than actually done. We here at ALiEM paired with Dr. Henry Curtis to come up with a creative way of developing debriefing skills and gain deeper understanding of mental frameworks.

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Child Whisperer Series: After the Pediatric Code Blue

“We need to debrief” said the nurse manager after the medical team walked out of the critical care room after pronouncing a child who died after a traumatic accident. The social worker pointed at me (I am a Child Life Specialist) and looked at her and said “It’s our code blue now. We have to wait. We have a job to do”. Which was her way of saying we still had a lot of work to do with the family. At that point I walked in a room with the social worker and devastated parents, where the patient’s brother waited. He looked at me with big eyes and wanted to know if his sibling was ok. Not a conversation I would wish upon my worst enemy.

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By |2016-11-11T17:13:19-08:00Jul 24, 2014|Pediatrics|

Sternoclavicular Joint Dislocations: Diagnosis and Treatment

Image obtained from healio.com

A 16-year-old football player presents to the emergency department directly from a game. He was tackled, falling onto his right shoulder. The patient is complaining of right-sided chest pain. On exam, there is tenderness over the right sternoclavicular joint (SCJ) with a prominent medial clavicle. Range of motion is limited in the right arm. What diagnostic studies need to be performed? What treatment is warranted in the emergency department?

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By |2019-02-06T20:11:22-08:00Jul 21, 2014|Orthopedic|

AIR Series: Infectious Disease, Hematology, Oncology 2014

Welcome to the first ALiEM Approved Instructional Resources (AIR) Module! In an effort to reward our readers for the reading and learning they are already doing online, we have created an Individual Interactive Instruction (III) opportunity utilizing FOAM resources for US Emergency Medicine residents. For each module, the board curates and scores a list of blogs and podcasts. A quiz is available to complete after each module to obtain residency conference credit. Once completed, your name and institution will be logged into our private Google Drive database, which participating residency program directors can access to provide access.

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