We interrupt these licensed images posts with…
Today, we bring you an incredibly useful alternative to the Wong-Baker FACES pain scale (Wong-Baker Faces, 2016), the 'highly unofficial LEGO Pain Assessment Chart' by Life of Dad (Moles, 2014).
By 5 Years Old 7 Percent of Children Have Had a Seizure
This post is a fast fact on some of the health experiences your patients may have had by the time they are 5. A 'nice to know' that may be useful to bear in mind during history taking.
Choking Doesn’t Always Happen Instantly After Putting Something in Your Mouth
Depending on where an object settles, the patient might have symptoms instantly or days after foreign body inhalation. A croupy cough might not be croup. An infection might not be a simple chest infection. Consider adding these questions to your history taking.
No SOB, No DIB, But It Is Still Pneumonia
Sometimes, children might present with pyrexia and symptoms that don't suggest they have a chest infection. Don't rule out pneumonia in a poorly child who isn't complaining of chesty symptoms - they may have it.
What are the main sections used for?
The various parts of the law applicable to mental health sectioning are Section 2, 3, 4, 5, 135 and 136 but Community Treatment Orders also enable sectioning. These allow for durations of 6 hours, 72 hours, 28 days or 6 months, depending on the type of section. Read more to find out which types provide those durations...
Who can enforce a sectioning order?
Nurses, doctors, police officers and mental health professionals whose requests are approved by police officers all have sectioning powers. Their powers vary in accordance with the law. The type of section they can place also varies between them. Paramedics do not have sectioning powers. Read more...
Article Summary: Maxillofacial Trauma Patient
Summary of 'Maxillofacial trauma patient' (Krausz et al, 2009). An article discussing the importance of effective airway management in the maxillofacial trauma patient and the complexities that such an injury presents. Only points relevant to UK paramedics have been included. For more details, please read the original article.
Nitrates could reduce mortality if given promptly
When given within the first 24 hours of a myocardial infarction, nitrates have been shown to 'reduce mortality [...] at 2 days' (Perez et al, 2009)
OP Airways VS LMAs and ETI
According to research by Khosraven et al (2015) one of the main disadvantages of an OP airway is that its length, shape & lack of an inflatable cuff may cause oxygen to leak, leading to less oxygen than we might hope for entering the patient's lungs.