Emergency Medicine Journal
1472-0213
1472-0205
Anh Quốc
Cơ quản chủ quản: BMJ Publishing Group
Các bài báo tiêu biểu
Numerous reports have questioned the ability of United States emergency departments to handle the increasing demand for emergency services. Emergency department (ED) overcrowding is widespread in US cities and has reportedly reached crisis proportions. The purpose of this review is to describe how ED overcrowding threatens patient safety and public health, and to explore the complex causes and potential solutions for the overcrowding crisis. A review of the literature from 1990 to 2002 identified by a search of the Medline database was performed. Additional sources were selected from the references of the articles identified. There were four key findings. (1) The ED is a vital component of America’s health care “safety net”. (2) Overcrowding in ED treatment areas threatens public health by compromising patient safety and jeopardising the reliability of the entire US emergency care system. (3) Although the causes of ED overcrowding are complex, the main cause is inadequate inpatient capacity for a patient population with an increasing severity of illness. (4) Potential solutions for ED overcrowding will require multidisciplinary system-wide support.
The importance of power and sample size estimation for study design and analysis.
Updated life-support guidelines were published by the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) in 2010, increasing the required depth and rate of chest compression delivery. This study sought to determine the impact of these guidelines on rescuer fatigue and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) performance.
62 Health science students performed 5 min of conventional CPR in accordance with the 2010 ERC guidelines. A SkillReporter manikin was used to objectively assess temporal change in determinants of CPR quality. Participants subjectively reported their end-fatigue levels, using a visual analogue scale, and the point at which they believed fatigue was affecting CPR delivery.
49 (79%) participants reported that fatigue affected their CPR performance, at an average of 167 s. End fatigue averaged 49.5/100 (range 0–95). The proportion of chest compressions delivered correctly decreased from 52% in min 1 to 39% in min 5, approaching significance (p=0.071). A significant decline in chest compressions reaching the recommended depth occurred between the first (53%) and fifth (38%) min (p=0.012). Almost half this decline (6%) was between the first and second minutes of CPR. Neither chest compression rate, nor rescue breath volume, were affected by rescuer fatigue.
Fatigue affects chest compression delivery within the second minute of CPR under the 2010 ERC guidelines, and is poorly judged by rescuers. Rescuers should, therefore, be encouraged to interchange after 2 min of CPR delivery. Team leaders should be advised to not rely on rescuers to self-report fatigue, and should, instead, monitor for its effects.