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.
The NEWS Score
According to Shaw et al's study (2017), patients whose conditions were deemed more serious in hospital had arrived with higher NEWS scores. The score for each patient was created from prehospital observations & so could be used to predict patient risk.
Be wary of the quiet child
Remember that the quiet child is often the child who is unwell.
What red flags need to be looked out for in a child?
According to Bruga et al (2013), the red flags to look out for range from those which directly concern a child's vital signs to states such as 'seizures', rashes and 'haemorrhage' (Bruga et al, 2013: 12). For the full list, please see the image below.
Fare Warning: The Decompensating Child
Be cautious during your medical examination of a young patient about how well children tend to compensate in illness
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...
What is a section?
A sectioning order is legislation powers given to health care professionals and police officers under the Mental Health Act's of 1983 and 2007 that allow for compulsory admission of an individual to hospital or a place of safety.