Current Issue: Volume 21 Issue 2

Endemic Infections

2019-nCoV: The Identify-Isolate-Inform (3I) Tool Applied to a Novel Emerging Coronavirus

Koenig, MD, et al.

This paper reports a modification of the 3I Tool for use in the initial detection and management of patients under investigation for 2019-nCoV. After initial assessment for symptoms and epidemiological risk factors, including travel to affected areas and exposure to confirmed 2019-nCoV patients within 14 days, patients are classified in a risk-stratified system.

Read More

Using Tenecteplase for Acute Ischemic Stroke: What Is the Hold Up?

Zitek, MD, et al.

This narrative review evaluates the literature and addresses the practical issues with regards to the use of tenecteplase versus alteplase for acute ischemic stroke, and it recommends that physicians consider tenecteplase rather than alteplase for thrombolysis of acute ischemic stroke.

Read More
Critical Care

Screening for QT Prolongation in the Emergency Department: Is There a Better “Rule of Thumb?”

Rischall, MD, et al.

Many emergency clinicians rely on the “rule of thumb” or “Half the RR” rule (Half-RR) as an initial screening method, but prior studies have shown that the Half-RR rule performs poorly as compared to other QT assessment methods. We sought to characterize the problems associated with the Half-RR rule and find a modified screening tool to more safely assess the QT interval of ED patients for prolonged QT.

Read More

Penalties for Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act Violations Involving Obstetrical Emergencies

Terp, MD, MPH, et al.

The Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) was intended to prevent inadequate, delayed, or denied treatment of emergent conditions by emergency departments (ED). While controversies exist regarding the scope of the law, there is no question that EMTALA applies to active labor, a key tenet of the statute and the only medical condition – labor – specifically included in the title of the law.

Read More
Provider Workforce

#MeToo in EM: A Multicenter Survey of Academic Emergency Medicine Faculty on Their Experiences with Gender Discrimination and Sexual Harassment

Lu, MD, et al.

Gender-based discrimination and sexual harassment of female physicians are well documented. The #MeToo movement has brought renewed attention to these problems. This study examined academic emergency physicians’ experiences with workplace gender discrimination and sexual harassment.

Read More

Emergency Department Clinicians’ Attitudes Toward Opioid Use Disorder and Emergency Department-initiated Buprenorphine Treatment: A Mixed-Methods Study

Im, MD, et al.

Emergency department (ED) visits related to opioid use disorder (OUD) have increased nearly twofold over the last decade. Treatment with buprenorphine has been demonstrated to decrease opioid-related overdose deaths. In this study, we aimed to better understand ED clinicians’ attitudes toward the initiation of buprenorphine treatment in the ED.

Read More
Population Health Research Design

Quality and Publication of Emergency Medicine Trials Registered in ClinicalTrials.gov

Calvocoressi, PhD, et al.

Promoting emergency medicine (EM) clinical trials research remains a priority. To characterize the status of clinical EM research, this study assessed trial quality, funding source, and publication of EM clinical trials and compared EM and non-EM trials on these key metrics. We also examined the volume of EM trials and their subspecialty areas.

Read More
Emergency Department Operations

“Breaking” the Emergency Department: Does the Culture of Emergency Medicine Present a Barrier to Self-Care?

O’Shea, MBBS, MA, et al.

Our goal was to critically examine emergency physician’s (EP) beliefs about taking breaks for self-care on shift. Our operational definition of a break for self-care included time not engaging in direct patient care, eating, drinking, using the bathroom, or leaving a clinical area for a mental break

Read More

Triage and Ongoing Care for Critically Ill Patients in the Emergency Department: Results from a National Survey of Emergency Physicians

Mathews, MD, MPH, et al.

We conducted a cross-sectional study at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai to elicit emergency physician (EP) perceptions regarding intensive care unit (ICU) triage decisions and ongoing management for boarding of ICU patients in the emergency department (ED). We assessed factors influencing the disposition decision for critically ill patients in the ED to characterize EPs’ perceptions about ongoing critical care delivery in the ED while awaiting ICU admission.

Read More

Tricuspid Annular Plane of Systolic Excursion (TAPSE) for the Evaluation of Patients with Severe Sepsis and Septic Shock

Lahham, MD, et al.

Sepsis is a systemic infection that can rapidly progress into multi organ failure and shock if left untreated. Previous studies have demonstrated the utility of point of care ultrasound (POCUS) in the evaluation of patients with sepsis. However, limited data exists on the evaluation of the tricuspid annular plane of systolic excursion (TAPSE) in patients with sepsis.

Read More

Contact Information

WestJEM/ Department of Emergency Medicine
UC Irvine Health

3800 W Chapman Ave Ste 3200
Orange, CA 92868, USA
Phone: 1-714-456-6389
Email: editor@westjem.org

CC-BY_icon.svg

WestJEM
ISSN: 1936-900X
e-ISSN: 1936-9018

CPC-EM
ISSN: 2474-252X

Our Philosophy

Emergency Medicine is a specialty which closely reflects societal challenges and consequences of public policy decisions. The emergency department specifically deals with social injustice, health and economic disparities, violence, substance abuse, and disaster preparedness and response. This journal focuses on how emergency care affects the health of the community and population, and conversely, how these societal challenges affect the composition of the patient population who seek care in the emergency department. The development of better systems to provide emergency care, including technology solutions, is critical to enhancing population health.