To continue our FLOW Hacks series, Victoria Woolner (NP, MN, MSc QIPS) writes about her team’s project tackling the ‘Treat and Release‘ patient. Setting This intervention was carried out at Toronto General and Toronto Western Hospital (UHN) in Toronto, Ontario. Between the two sites, there are approximately 117, 000 visits per year. Description of the innovation Treat & release (T&R) patients are patients that have been seen in the ED and asked to return …
CAEP FEI | The Nursing Shift: Inter-Professional Education for Medical Students
Amy is a fourth year emergency medicine resident, who has recently started supervising medical students while on shift. She meets Jim, a third year medical student, who will be working with her for the shift. Over the course of the shift, it becomes apparent that Jim is struggling with understanding a charge nurse’s role in the emergency department. Amy wishes there was a way for medical students like Jim to gain more insight …
FLOW Hacks 7 – Doc in the Box: Improving Physician Initial Assessment Time in the Emergency Department
To continue our FLOW Hacks series, Dr. Joanna Bostwick writes about her team’s innovation aimed at improving physician initial assessment time in the ED. Setting This intervention was carried out at Hôpital Montfort, Ottawa, Ontario, an academic francophone community hospital with 56, 000 ED visits per year. Description of the innovation Our ED has applied an adapted version of Physician in Triage (PIT) termed “Doc in the Box” with the goal of decreasing physician …
CAEP FEI | Human Trafficking Awareness: A Learning Module
Jeremy is a second year resident who is about to see a 25 year old female presenting with abdominal pain. During the history he notices the patient is remarkably quiet and that the patient’s male friend is answering all the questions for her. When Jeremy asks the male friend to leave the room for a moment, both the patient and the friend object. Jeremy starts wondering if this patient might be a victim …
Spot the Diagnosis! The Case of the Dropsical Child
In this Spot the Diagnosis! post, we have the case of an ill looking child, brought in for healing by a worried mother. Through the symbolic ox, the haloed saint is identified as St Luke, a physician in the New Testament. (Note the book at his lap entitled “Hippocrates”.) (Can you also see St. Luke’s other noted profession? Answer: An artist!) What does this scene depict? This scene depicts three people: an adult …
Fighting Fire With Words: Journaling and Physician Wellness
Burnout and physician wellness are two sides of the same coin. With the use of journaling, one can flip the coin with the odds in their favour. Burnout, a prevalent term in emergency medicine, is defined as a mix of emotional exhaustion, lack of control, and depersonalization.1 Importantly, studies demonstrate that 65% of emergency physicians may experience burnout for a portion of their career1. This staggering rate is, in fact, more than double the …