Ongoing Monitoring/Investigations in the ED

The following should be monitored:

• Heart rate, respiratory rate, BP and PEFR should be recorded 15-30 minutes after starting treatment and serially according to response

• Patients that stabilise with treatment should be reassessed at one hour and 2 hours after initial treatment

• Oxygen saturations should be maintained at 94-98%

• Urgent senior medical input should be sought for any patient that fails to improve or deteriorate after initial therapy

• The potassium level should be reviewed when the U&E results are available

• In cases where there is an indication for arterial blood gas sampling, this should be repeated within one hour of starting treatment