ED Management articles from June 2004

ED Management archives from June 2004

Timing and diplomacy are keys to CT scans in the emergency department: avoid using contrast in many cases to save time, some experts advise.(computed tomography)
June 1, 2004... Executive Summary Patients needing abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans can back up in your ED if you don't employ strategies to move them out fast. * Consider reducing the use of contrast studies. * Liberal use of antiemetics...

Radiology's point of view: work with us on CT scans.(computed tomography)
June 1, 2004... When working with your radiology department to reduce the time it takes to get abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans for emergency patients, be sure to look at the issue from their perspective, suggests the nation's leading radiologist. ...

Root-cause analysis is useful for ED problems.(Emergency Department )
June 1, 2004... An analysis tool commonly used for investigating adverse events and other process errors in health care can prove useful in the ED as well, say experts who have seen it used to address long wait times and similar problems. The technique is...

Root-cause analysis requires multiple steps.
June 1, 2004... A root-cause analysis (RCA) is a complex tool that requires professional training, but an ED manager can utilize it with the help of an expert, says Kenneth A. Hirsch, MD, PhD, a practicing psychiatrist and director of Medical Risk Management...

Mental illness taxing EDs, affecting other patients.(Emergency Department )
June 1, 2004... If it seems you're seeing more patients with mental illnesses recently, you're not imagining it. The number of people with mental illness seeking care in the ED has surged recently, and the increase is taking a toll on other ED care, says J....

EDs struggle with growing numbers of uninsured.(emergency department)
June 1, 2004... 'Expect problem to get worse--plan accordingly' In addition to increased numbers of mentally ill patients, EDs are seeing more uninsured patients than in the past, and the numbers could grow, warns Brian Hancock, MD, president of the...

If nurses hoard patients, how can you improve flow?(Reader Question)
June 1, 2004... Question: How do we avoid patient "hoarding," in which nurses or physicians intentionally delay moving a patient out to delay the next patient and give themselves a breather? We've already warned that hoarding won't be tolerated, but it still...

Hsu J, Reed M, Brand R, et al. Cost sharing: Patient knowledge and effects on seeking emergency department care.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Hsu J, Reed M, Brand R, et al. Cost sharing: Patient knowledge and effects on seeking emergency department care. Med Care 2004; 42:290-296. These researchers from the Kaiser Foundation Research Institute in Oakland, CA, and other...

Saketkhoo DD, Bhargavan M, Sunshine JH, et al. Emergency department image interpretation services at private community hospitals.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Saketkhoo DD, Bhargavan M, Sunshine JH, et al. Emergency department image interpretation services at private community hospitals. Radiology 2004; 231:190-197. Radiologic image interpretation varies greatly among EDs; in fact, it varies so...

Lyons MS, Lindsell CJ, Trott AT. Emergency department pelvic examination and Pap testing: Addressing patient misperceptions.
June 1, 2004... Lyons MS, Lindsell CJ, Trott AT. Emergency department pelvic examination and Pap testing: Addressing patient misperceptions. Acad Emerg Med 2004; 11:405-408. Many women treated in the ED mistakenly assume they have received Papanicolaou...

EMTALA Q & A.(Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act )
June 1, 2004... [Editor's note: This column addresses readers' questions about the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). If you have a question you'd like answered, contact Steve Lewis, Editor, ED Management, 215 Tawneywood Way, Alpharetta, GA...

CE/CME questions.
June 1, 2004... 13. At the Oklahoma University Medical Center, where do ED patients go while waiting for the results of an abdominal CT scan, according to Conrad D. Brown, PhD, director of the ED? A. They go back to the ED. B. They stay in radiology....