INTRODUCTION: In-flight medical emergencies require healthcare providers to operate in confined spaces with limited resources and delayed access to definitive care. These emergencies are common, with an estimated frequency of 1 per 100 to 1000 flights. Despite this, training
for medical response in these environments is limited. We hypothesize that integrating such education into a pre-existing medical student elective course would improve knowledge and ability to respond appropriately to in-flight medical emergencies.METHODS: The available literature
surrounding in-flight medical emergencies was reviewed. Syncope, respiratory distress, allergic reaction, and cardiac arrest were identified as common and potentially life-threatening complaints. Simulation cases were designed for each of these complaints and a simulation room was modified
to mimic an airplane cabin. These simulation cases and accompanying relevant didactic lectures were incorporated into an existing wilderness and extreme environmental medicine course, with multiple-choice tests completed by the students at the beginning and end of the 2-wk course.RESULTS:
Participating in this study were 18 students. The pretest average was 76%, which improved to 87% on the posttest. Qualitative feedback regarding this type of training was overwhelmingly positive.DISCUSSION: Simulation-based training for in-flight medical emergencies can significantly
improve medical students’ knowledge. This training was very well received by the students. Opportunities for training to manage in-flight medical emergencies remain limited; incorporating such training into existing curricula could provide a means by which to improve provider knowledge.
Such a curriculum could be adapted for use by flight crews and other populations.Padaki A, Redha W, Clark T, Nichols T, Jacoby L, Slivka R, Ranniger C, Lehnhardt K. Simulation training for in-flight medical emergencies improves provider knowledge and confidence. Aerosp Med Hum
Perform. 2018; 89(12):1076–1079.
With the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2010, significant changes are occurring within the healthcare system. It is imperative that ways to both reduce cost and improve health are found. Since emergency medicine is often considered the gateway to the healthcare system, healthcare providers need to determine the best way to provide high quality care in the emergency department while also curbing costs. Mobile health, or mHealth, utilizes technology to increase the mobility of patients and their providers and provides a medium to transfer data and information efficiently. In emergency medicine, this technology can be applied in various treatments including wound care, stroke care, and prehospital care. In this article, the authors discuss the current uses of mHealth within emergency care and potential areas for future growth.
trauma patients by triage level, significantly shorter clinical documentation times were observed with the modified EMR system in levels 2 (emergency) and 3 (urgent).Conclusions: Using different interfaces for trauma findings shortened the time for clinical documentation for trauma patients.
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