Top 20 ALiEM Clinical Posts in 2014
Seasons greetings from the ALiEM. We have been expanding our range of posts in the hopes of sharing new lessons, exploring the concept of digital scholarship, and advancing life skills. Based on our recent survey, we understand that our loyal base of readers are those looking for clinical content. So here are our top 20 most popular ALiEM clinical posts in 2014. Did you read these? [+]
I am Professor Simon Carley, co-creator of St. Emlyn’s blog: How I Work Smarter
Professor Simon Carley’s (@EMManchester) many roles and titles would not fit in the title of this post, and so I mentioned the St. Emlyn’s blog because this was how I first learned of Simon and his passionate dedication for education. As the co-creator of the St. Emlyn’s blog and podcast, Simon worked with a team of amazing contributors teaching about EM, critical care, and medical education. Fun fact: Simon starred in a Trick of the Trade video on Ring Removal on ALiEM that thus far has >1.8 million views! He has been incredibly successful in two contrasting careers – the worlds of online education and academia. He has published [+]
ALiEM Expert Peer Reviewed Posts in 2014
Last year, we launched a new initiative to bring on solicited Expert Peer Reviewers (EPR) for selected posts. These reviewers would need to have specific credentials, such as having previously published in a journal or textbook, presented the topic at a national conference, or have extra training in the area. In fact, we have added this as an required feature for all posts which have come through our New Submissions process. We wish to thank all our expert peer reviewers, who have kindly provided their open comments, which have significantly added to the educational value of the post. Below lists [+]
Diagnose on Sight: Painful Scrotal Swelling
Case: A 48 year old male with a history of alcoholism presents with one day of painful scrotal swelling. What is the most important next step in management? Please read below for uncensored image. [+]
Director of Growth, [+]
AIR Series: Psychiatry Module 2014
Welcome to the fifth ALiEM Approved Instructional Resources (AIR) Module! In an effort to reward our residents for the reading and learning they are already doing online we have created an Individual Interactive Instruction (III) opportunity utilizing FOAM resources for U.S. Emergency Medicine residents. For each module, the AIR 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 database, which participating residency program directors can access to provide proof of completion. [+]
US4TW Case: 74F with Right Arm Tingling | Ultrasound for the Win series
Welcome to another ultrasound-based case, part of the “Ultrasound For The Win!” (#US4TW) Case Series. In this peer-reviewed case series, we focus on real clinical cases where bedside ultrasound changed management or aided in diagnoses. In today’s case, a 74-year-old woman presents to the Emergency Department with painful right arm paresthesias. [+]
Rob Bryant MD
I am Eve Purdy, author of Manu et Corde blog: How I Work Smarter
Eve Purdy (@Purdy_Eve) is one of those rising stars in medical education, who “leads from the middle” in her role as a senior medical student at Queen’s University. She is already quite involved as a blogger at Manu et Corde, a Medical Student Editor at Boring EM, and as a part of the ALiEM Book Club team. I, along with many others, are eager to see what Eve has in store for the world of medical education in her early promising superstar career. Eve was tagged by Dr. Teresa Chan in a previous How I Work Smarter post and was kind enough [+]
Future of ALiEM: Need YOUR input
The 2014 year has been amazing. As 2015 approaches, the ALiEM team has gotten quite reflective and thankful for the past amazing 12 months. We can track many things through Google Analytics, but there's nothing like hearing from our readership directly to help us shape the upcoming 12 months. There are many innovative plans in the works, and your input would be incredibly helpful to help us tailor our priorities to what YOU want. We are a volunteer organization, made up of passionate, early-adopting educators, who are asking for nothing more than YOUR valuable input. Please donate 1 minute of your time to fill out this quick survey. Once you submit your [+]
ALiEM Bookclub: Risk Savvy
The full title of Gerd Gigerenzer’s book is Risk Savvy: How to Make Good Decisions [Amazon], which is exactly what makes this book so relevant, not just to the everyday reader, but to the medical reader. We make decisions every day in the medical field that range from the complex of intubating someone with low reserve or difficult airway anatomy to the less life-and-death decision of when to best time a quick food break between seeing patients. Of course, we also help our patients make very complex decisions, especially in the ED when time is short but risk can be high. And it certainly is not [+]
Esmolol Use in Cardiac Arrest
There is an abundance of sympathetic stimulation in patients who present in ventricular fibrillation (VF) or pulseless ventricular tachycardia (VT) whether endogenously released as a stress response or exogenously administered in a resuscitation attempt.1 The hope is that sympathetic stimulation will increase the coronary and cerebral perfusion pressure of the patient and aid in resuscitation. However, there are numerous detrimental effects associated with epinephrine such as an increase in myocardial oxygen demand leading to increased ischemia.2 Contrary to traditional teaching, interesting evidence exists in both animal models as well as in limited reports in human subjects that show a potential [+]