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An Incidentally Major Event – Memories of a Sleepy Mind

I was on a night shift, in a major trauma centre, still an ST3 at the time. We were actually having a nice night shift in not so cold weather. There was still a little flow of patients, we had some room in resus and our minors area was pretty empty. Some may even brave the "Q" word.
  • Blog

Limited English Proficiency in the ED

It wasn't until I spent some time working in France and in the DRCongo that I really developed an understanding of communicating in a second (or third) language, or not being able to communicate with someone at all
  • Blog

Ear Disease

To the ENT novice there are a baffling number of terms that refer to problems with the ear... "otitis media" is that acute? Or suppurative? Or secretory? And where does glue ear fit into all of this and what are grommets anyway?!
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Leadership and Trust

Trust lies at the foundation of any relationship. A relationship without trust is never going to be long-lasting, or at least, a positive one. The same applies with the leader-follower relationship in the workplace. But what is it what makes one human-being trust another human-being?
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Trainee Teaching Sessions in the COVID outbreak Part 1

Welcome to the first of our virtual monthly teaching sessions. This is something we have organised in the North West for higher trainees who all get a teaching day a month to cover some curriculum topics, and we thought we'd share what we've done with the RCEM Community
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Dying Matters in the ED

Working in the ED probably exposes us to a considerable amount of death and dying. From the unexpected cardiac arrest or trauma patient, through to the expected death of a patient with a terminal prognosis
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Coronavirus, (COVID19) tips and resources

RCEMLearning Coronavirus, COVID19, tips and resources
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Boxing and Facial Injuries

Using Emergency Medicine skills as a Boxing Ringside Doctor.
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The ABC of Self-Harm in Young People – A Psychiatric Approach to Resuscitation

Why is this a hot topic? It is a sign of serious distress. It is common. It is strongly associated with suicide. Suicide is one of commonest causes death in young people. 200% increase in self harm 1985-1995. If ever you have the opportunity to save a young persons life - it is now.
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Let’s be frank Liz… I missed a Lisfranc

I want to talk about Lisfranc fractures. I recently missed one and found out it is misdiagnosed 1 in 5 times! So thought it would be a good topic to talk about.
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TAKE STOCK – Hot Debrief

Medical student Max Sugarman tells RCEMLearning what triggered him to work on a hot debrief tool and how he went about implementing it.
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Breathe it in: Nebulised Naloxone

Management of opiate overdose is simple. ABCDE assessment, support of oxygenation and respiration as necessary, and antagonise with naloxone if toxicity is severe. Everyone has their own take on it. But what about the ongoing care?
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Passing the ARCP, or how to keep your TPD happy

The Annual Review of Competence Progression is an annual (!) assessment process, designed to ensure you are progressing through your training appropriately.
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Minor Injuries – upper limb

Our hands are important. The sensory information they collect and their ability to co-ordinate complex movements allow us to explore and physically interact with our environment.
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Simulation Overview

Immersive manikin simulation is a popular teaching modality in healthcare, with lots of tips everywhere. It's so popular RCEM does have a simulation committee, and regional leads have been appointed
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Aortic Dissection

About 1 year ago, Pam, a 62-year-old, recently retired teacher, fit, well & active, suffered sudden onset of severe ‘ripping’ pain in her chest & upper abdomen
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Medical Gases in ED

Medical gases are something used every day in the emergency setting, both pre-hospital and in-hospital, whether it be oxygen, medical air, or nitrous oxide. Each of these gases have their part to play in the emergency setting.
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“Acute Stress” and Resilience

In simulation scenarios, people often say that they felt "stressed". So, how do we manage this "acute stress"?
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Scrooge-ED: an Alternative Christmas Carol

Christmas Eve. Late shift. Dr Ebenezer Scrooge, FRCEM, had just managed to escape to his office. The evening had been spent, predictably, swimming in a sea of elderly patients presenting "off legs" and teenagers presenting, erm, off legs
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Paediatric Seizures

The seizing child is truly a scary thing to behold. If you work in the Paediatric ED, you will, at some stage, come across a child who has had a seizure, is recovering from a seizure, or is actively seizing
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Child Abuse

The dark side of PEM, and what should also be on your differential diagnosis for any patient you are seeing is: "was this inflicted" and "is there something more?".
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Minor Injuries

It's safe to say you will likely see a few of these, as minor injuries are a very common occurrence in childhood with around 20-30% of all paediatric attendances to the Emergency Department involving minor injuries or trauma.
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Decision Making in Paeds

EM physicians need to be decision makers, quick thinkers and risk balancers. This is what we are good at. In fact, many will tell you that the purpose of the PEM rotation is to learn to spot the sick child
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PEM Tips from Someone Who Knows

RCEMLearning asked Kate Dear what her tips for new docs in the PED are. Kate is an excellent Nurse Consultant/ANP, and if there is someone who knows, it's her.

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