Performance of a multi-disciplinary emergency department observation protocol for acetaminophen overdose.

The availability of 20-h N-acetylcysteine (NAC) infusion for low-risk acetaminophen (APAP) overdose enabled our center to implement an Emergency Department observation unit (OU) protocol as an alternative to hospitalization. Our objective was to evaluate our early experience with this protocol. This retrospective cohort study included all patients treated for low-risk APAP overdose in our academic hospital between 2006 and 2011. Cases were identified using OU and pharmacy records. Successful OU discharge was defined as disposition with no inpatient admission. Differences in medians with 95 % confidence intervals were used for comparisons. One hundred ninety-six patients received NAC for APAP overdose with a mean age of 35 years (SD 14); 73 % were white, and 43 % were male. Twenty (10 %) received care in the OU; 3/20(15 %) met criteria for inclusion in the OU protocol and 13/20(65 %) were discharged successfully. Out of the 196 patients, 10 met criteria for inclusion in the OU protocol but instead received care in the inpatient setting. The median total length of stay from presentation to ED discharge was 41 h for all patients treated in the OU, compared to 68 h for ten patients who met criteria for inclusion in the OU protocol but who were admitted (difference 27 h, 95 % CI 18-72 h). ED observation for APAP overdose can be a viable alternative to inpatient admission. Most patients were successfully discharged from the OU. This evaluation identified both over- and under-utilization of the OU. OU treatment resulted in shorter median length of stay than inpatient admission.

An automated dispensing system for improving medication timing in the emergency department.

BACKGROUND: Numerous medical conditions require timely medication administration in the emergency department (ED). Automated dispensing systems (ADSs) store premixed common doses at the point-of-care to minimize time to administration, but the use of such automation to improved time to medication administration has not been studied. Since vancomycin is a commonly used empiric antimicrobial, we sought to quantify the effect of using an ADS on time to drug delivery in patients presenting to the ED. The study aimed to determine the efficacy of utilizing an ADS to improve time to administration of vancomycin and determine any negative effects on dosing appropriateness. METHODS: The institional review board approved the retrospective quality improvement study took place in a single, urban academic tertiary care ED with an annual census of 80 000. Study subjects were all patients receiving vancomycin for the management of sepsis between March 1 to September 30, 2008 and the same time period in 2009. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who received vancomycin within one hour of bed placement and the secondary outcome was dosing appropriateness. RESULTS: Sixty-three patients had weight and dosing information available (29 before and 34 after intervention) and were included in the study. Before intervention, no patient received vancomycin in less than 60 minutes, while after intervention 14.7% of the patients received it in less than 60 minutes (difference in proportions 14.7%, 95% CI 0.39%-30.0%, P=0.04). A similar proportion of the patients received correct dosing before and after intervention (44.8% vs. 41.2%, difference in proportions 3.7%, 95% CI -20.0%-26.7%, P=0.770). CONCLUSION: The use of an ADS may improve the timing of medication administration in patients presenting to the ED without affecting dosing appropriateness.

The degree of bandemia in septic ED patients does not predict inpatient mortality.

BACKGROUND: A delay in diagnosis of sepsis and appropriate treatment increases subsequent mortality. An association with the degree of bandemia, or the presence of immature neutrophils in the white blood cell count, has not been explored in septic patients presenting to the emergency department (ED). We hypothesized that the presenting band levels would be higher in septic patients who die in hospital compared with survivors. METHODS: This study reviewed charts of ED patients presenting with sepsis to a single urban, academic, tertiary care ED with an annual census of 80,000 visits. Patients were included if they had bandemia assessed and were eligible for early goal-directed therapy. Reviewers blinded to the study purpose abstracted data using predetermined definitions. The band level was compared between patients who died and those who survived to discharge using the Mann-Whitney U test. Logistic regression was used to estimate the effect of bandemia levels on the odds of death. RESULTS: Ninety-six patients meeting inclusion criteria were enrolled; 2 were excluded with incomplete data. Mean age was 59 years, 53% were white, and 51% were male. Thirty-two patients (34%) died during admission. The median band levels in patients who died was 17% (range, 0%-67%); and in patients surviving to discharge, the median band level was 9% (range, 0%-77%) (difference in medians, 8%; CI(95), -27.04 to 11.04; P = .222). CONCLUSIONS: The band level on presentation was not found to be associated with inpatient mortality in ED patients with sepsis who are eligible for early goal-directed therapy.

Never getting to zero: Elementary school students' understanding of the infinite divisibility of number and matter.

Clinical interviews administered to third- to sixth-graders explored children's conceptualizations of rational number and of certain extensive physical quantities. We found within child consistency in reasoning about diverse aspects of rational number. Children's spontaneous acknowledgement of the existence of numbers between 0 and 1 was strongly related to their induction that numbers are infinitely divisible in the sense that they can be repeatedly divided without ever getting to zero. Their conceptualizing number as infinitely divisible was strongly related to their having a model of fraction notation based on division and to their successful judgment of the relative magnitudes of fractions and decimals. In addition, their understanding number as infinitely divisible was strongly related to their understanding physical quantities as infinitely divisible. These results support a conceptual change account of knowledge acquisition, involving two-way mappings between the domains of number and physical quantity.