MEdIC Series: Case of the Honorary Authorship – Expert Review & Curated Commentary
The Case of the Honorary Authorship outlined a scenario of a senior academic scientist interacting with two more junior researchers, raising issues around publication ethics and professionalism. This month the MEdIC team (Brent Thoma, Sarah Luckett-Gatopoulos, Tamara McColl, Eve Purdy, John Eicken, and Teresa Chan), hosted a discussion around these questions with insights from the ALiEM community. We are proud to present to you the Curated Community Commentary and our 2 expert opinions. Thank-you to all our participants for contributing to the very rich discussions last week. [+]
Trick of the Trade: Tibial Intraosseous Line Stabilization in an Agitated Patient
With the advent of commercial intraosseous (IO) needles for vascular access, administering IV medications for patients in extremis has been made much easier. Securing the IO needle to the patient’s tibia, femur, or humerus, however, is a different story. After successful patient resuscitation, these needles often tenuously secured through creative uses of sterile gauze, trimmed paper cups, bag valve masks, and/or just tape. Stabilization of tibial IO lines can be difficult in a sedated, intubated patient. This can be even more difficult in an agitated, moving patient. [+]
Extensor tendon injuries of the hand: Emergency Department management
You are working in the treatment area with a medical student and she is ready to review a “straightforward” case with you. She presents a young, healthy 27-year-old man with a laceration over the dorsal surface of the left hand after a kitchen mishap. It appears clean, and she doesn’t suspect a foreign body. The neurovascular status seems okay with the intact ability to extend the fingers. Her plan is to repair the wound and send the patient for follow up in 7 to 10 days with his family physician for suture removal. The wound appears superficial, but you are an astute clinician and wonder [+]
I am Dr. Howard Ovens, Department Chief: How I Stay Healthy in EM
Dr. Howard Ovens is an emergency physician and the Chief of the Emergency Department at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. Dr. Ovens takes his personal health and wellness seriously, and is very committed to maintaining his physical fitness. No matter what the challenge or set back is, Dr. Ovens still makes it a top priority to keep his wellness in mind. Here’s how he stays healthy in EM! [+]
Escaping Addiction with Dignity as a Medical Student
“The most obvious, ubiquitous, important realities are often the ones that are the hardest to see and talk about.” –David Foster Wallace Addiction can be a nightmare of isolation and shame, but it doesn’t have to be. I will always remember my last night of withdraw; sitting in the busy waiting room of my training hospital. I kept thinking about what might happen if one of my EM attendings were to care for me. To see me sick, weak, and vulnerable. Nobody other than my family knew I struggled with alcohol abuse, and I was exhausted with the neverending cycle of [+]
EM Match Advice: Program Directors Reflect on the 2016 Match
The new emergency medicine (EM) residency application season is upon us! Senior medical students are arranging away EM electives, asking for letters of recommendations, and thinking about what residency programs to apply to. But before we look forward, what lessons can we learn from the 2016 EM Residency Match? In this EM Match Advice series installment, an esteemed panel of program directors reflect on the trends, surprises, and lessons learned from the 2015-16 year. Dr. Michael Gisondi (Northwestern) hosts the discussion with the panelists Dr. Diane Rimple (University of New Mexico), Dr. Michael Bond (University of Maryland), and Dr. Christopher Doty (University of Kentucky). [+]
MEdIC Case: The Case of the Honorary Authorship
Welcome to season 3, episode 9 of the ALiEM Medical Education in Cases (MEdIC) series! Our team (Brent Thoma, Sarah Luckett-Gatopoulos, Tamara McColl, Eve Purdy, John Eicken, and Teresa Chan) is pleased to welcome you to our online community of practice where we discuss the practice of academic medicine! In this month’s case a junior staff person is unsure of whether or not to include a senior staff on a paper. [+]
IDEA Series: Just-in-Time Procedural Training for Endotracheal Intubation
The Problem Procedural training is critical in emergency medicine (EM). EM residents must effectively acquire the skills to safely and accurately perform high-stakes, invasive, and life-saving procedures during high-pressure scenarios. Residency programs typically incorporate procedural skills workshops into didactic sessions, which results in residents practicing procedures several weeks or months before performing them clinically. Unfortunately, there is no established method to practice and evaluate procedural skills competency immediately prior to performing invasive procedures on a patient. A solution to this issue may lead to improved outcomes and greater patient safety. [+]
AIR-Pro Series: Critical Care (part 2) Module
Welcome to the Critical Care (Part 2) Block! Below we have listed our selection of the highest quality posts related to 4 advanced level questions on critical care topics posed, curated, and approved for senior residents by the AIR-Pro Series Board. The blogs relate to the following questions: Advanced ventilatory management Submassive pulmonary embolism management Hypotensive intubation End of life discussion AIR Stamp of Approval and Honorable Mentions In an effort to truly emphasize the highest quality posts, we have 2 subsets of recommended resources. The AIR-Pro stamp of approval will only be given to posts scoring above a strict scoring cut-off of ≥28 points (out [+]
AIR Series and AIR-Pro Series are moving to ALiEMU!
The ALiEM Approved Instructional Resources (AIR) and AIR-Pro series are moving from this ALiEM blog, which uses embedded Google Forms for quizzes into our custom learning management system called ALiEMU. ALiEMU will be our one-stop system for asynchronous learning. For U.S. EM residency programs, this will also serve as a central repository for Individualized Interactive Instruction (III) resources for asynchronous conference credit. The cornerstone e-course already on ALiEMU is CAPSULES — a comprehensive EM pharmacology curriculum, whose authorship and editorial team is led by Dr. Bryan Hayes. For the AIR and AIR-Pro series, we have over 80 U.S. EM residency programs, 4 international EM programs, and 1 PA [+]