How I Work Smarter: Christopher Colbert, DO FACEP, FACOEP, FAAEM
One word that best describes how you work? Practical Current mobile device iPhone 12 Computer iMac Pro / Mac book Pro What is something you are working on now? Organizing/Planning the ACOEP’s annual Spring Seminar How did you come up with this Idea/Project? I have been part of the planning committee for the spring conference for 5 years. What’s your office workspace setup like? A well-lit room with decent speakers (huge music fan), 2 Macs side-by-side, and most importantly, a very comfy chair. What’s your best time-saving tip in the office or home? Keep your work in your office so [+]
ALiEM Stands in Solidarity with Our Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Community
We at ALiEM wholeheartedly condemn the xenophobia, intolerance, and hate crimes directed towards Asians and the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. Recent events spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic are hurtful, “othering,” and simply unacceptable. Anti-Asian hate crimes across the country since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic have increased 833% in 2020, compared to 2019, in cities across the United States [1]. This heart-breaking trend of violent assaults against individuals in the AAPI community is misguided and counter to the healing and building that our country direly needs as a result of the global pandemic. Last week’s shootings [+]
ALiEM AIR Series | Gastroenterology 2020 Module
Welcome to the AIR Gastroenterology Module! After carefully reviewing all relevant posts from the top 50 sites of the Social Media Index, the ALiEM AIR Team is proud to present the highest quality online content related to gastroenterology in the Emergency Department. 6 blog posts within the past 12 months (as of November 2020) met our standard of online excellence and were curated and approved for residency training by the AIR Series Board. We identified 1 AIR and 5 Honorable Mentions. We recommend programs give 3 hours (about 30 minutes per article) of III credit for this module. AIR Stamp [+]
Teaching LGBTQ+ Health: 10 Clinical Pearls
Are you confident in your skills when taking care of LGBTQ+ patients? Are you able to teach principles of LGBTQ+ health to trainees in your clinical practice and the classroom setting? Learners across the health professions demand improved LGBTQ+ health content and additional training opportunities in their schools’ curricula. However, most clinician educators received little, if any, training in LGBTQ+ health when they were students. 10 Clinical Pearls on Teaching About LGBTQ+ Health The following are some sneak-peak clinical pearls from the Teaching LGBTQ+ Health online course that just launched. This open access, interactive, CME course was published in conjunction [+]
EMRad: Radiologic Approach to the Pediatric Traumatic Elbow X-ray
This is EMRad, a series aimed at providing “just in time” approaches to commonly ordered radiology studies in the emergency department [1]. When applicable, it will provide pertinent measurements specific to management, and offer a framework for when to get an additional view, if appropriate. We recently covered the adult elbow, here we will cover the approach to the pediatric elbow. Learning Objectives Interpret traumatic pediatric elbow x-rays using a standard approach Identify clinical scenarios in which an additional view might improve pathology diagnosis Why the pediatric elbow matters and the radiology rule of 2’s The Pediatric Elbow 10% of [+]
SplintER Series: Venous Thoracic Outlet Syndrome
A 29-year-old male presents with right shoulder pain, throbbing, and swelling. He states that a bulge has appeared over his right anterior shoulder recently (Image 1). While he was doing pushups today, he began to have numbness, tingling, and weakness in his right arm. While in the waiting room, his symptoms have completely resolved. Image 1: Bedside ultrasound of the anterior shoulder at the site of the bulge. AA=axillary artery. AV=axillary vein. Author’s image. [+]
Does the Combination of Parenteral Olanzapine with Benzodiazepines for Agitation in the ED Increase the Risk of Adverse Events?
A previous EM Pharm Pearl focused on the adverse events associated with the use of IV olanzapine for agitation. This pearl addresses concerns around using parenteral (IV or IM) olanzapine with parenteral benzodiazepines. Background Olanzapine has two FDA boxed warnings, one for increased mortality when used long-term in older adults with dementia-related psychosis and another pertaining to adverse effects of extended release IM olanzapine. However, there exists a potential risk of excess sedation and respiratory depression when IM/IV olanzapine is administered with parenteral benzodiazepines for agitation. The European Medicines Agency recommends separating the administration of IM/IV olanzapine and parenteral benzodiazepines [+]
How I Work Smarter: Molly Estes, MD, FACEP, FAAEM
One word that best describes how you work? Efficiently Current mobile device iPhone 11 Pro Computer MacBook Air What is something you are working on now? This survey :) In seriousness, trying to complete a survey-based study on the effects of virtual rotations on the 2020-21 EM application cycle. How did you come up with this Idea/Project? This idea was generated by a subcommittee I am a part of through the Advising Students Committee in EM (ASCEM) through CORD. After brainstorming about the effects that the required conversion to virtual rotations might have had on this year's students applying into [+]
SplintER Series: A Case of Arm Pain
An 80-year-old male presents with severe right arm pain after he tripped and fell down 2 steps. Examination shows deformity and swelling to his right upper arm. You obtain AP and lateral humerus x-rays as above. [+]
Computerized Adaptive Screen for Suicidal Youth (CASSY) study
Adolescent suicide rates in the United States, partly augmented by the COVID-19 pandemic, are steadily increasing [1, 2]. A commonly used screening tool is the 4-question Ask Suicide-Screening Questions (ASQ) instrument, which has a sensitivity and specificity of 60% and 92.7%, respectively, in predicting suicide-related events within 3 months. This was derived from a retrospective study of 15,003 pediatric patients (age 10-18 years) [3]. Given the morbidity and mortality associated with suicide attempts, is there a better screening tool with a higher sensitivity than 60%, while also maintaining adequate specificity? A higher sensitivity rate ensures that we have fewer misses. [+]