Heuristic Thinking in the Emergency Department

This paper explores the use of heuristics among highly-trained physicians diagnosing heart disease in the emergency department, a common task with life-or-death consequences. Using data from a large private-payer claims database,... read more

Heuristic Thinking in the Emergency Department

Improving Handovers By Learning From Ferrari Team

We were able to improve our vulnerable processes by translating good practice found in two industries – aviation and motor racing – into healthcare. We were able to do this by taking into account the subtle complexities... read more

Improving Handovers By Learning From Ferrari Team

Dr. Paul Wischmeyer Brings Humanity To Medicine

Dr. Paul Wischmeyer's journey to becoming an internationally-renowned critical care and perioperative nutrition researcher and clinician began at the age of 15 when a bout of strep throat and a prescription for antibiotics... read more

Dr. Paul Wischmeyer Brings Humanity To Medicine

Antibiotic Prescription Course

In July, The BMJ published an analysis article called "The Antibiotic Course has had it’s day" - a provocative title that turned out the garner a lot of debate on our site. The article said that the convention for the length... read more

Antibiotic Prescription Course

There are no wrong questions to ask in the ICU

A common confusion is differentiating between critical care and emergency medicine. Essentially, in emergency medicine, doctors and nurses stabilize patients and then transfer them to the appropriate area of the hospital,... read more

There are no wrong questions to ask in the ICU

Will You Be My Mentor?

The origins of mentoring date back to Odysseus, who entrusted care of his son to Mentor when he set off to fight the Trojan wars. Mentor became a trusted advisor, teacher, and friend to Telemachus, epitomizing the attributes... read more

Medical Journals in the Age of Ubiquitous Social Media

Medical journals increasingly use social media to engage their audiences in a variety of ways, from simply broadcasting content via blogs, micro-blogs, and podcasts to more interactive methods such as Twitter chats and online... read more

Medical Journals in the Age of Ubiquitous Social Media

Optimizing Strategies for Clinical Decision Support

As a result of a collaboration between the NAM and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, this NAM Special Publication summarizes and builds upon a meeting series in which a multi-stakeholder... read more

Optimizing Strategies for Clinical Decision Support

Despite My Best Intentions

The resident looked worried and the intern was nervous. They were concerned about an elderly patient with low cardiac output heart failure. We reviewed our plans for the day, and as we entered his intensive care unit (ICU)... read more

Despite My Best Intentions

Surgeons Are Using Social Media to Share and Learn New Skills

Learning from others' experiences is an important aspect of professional development in surgery. That’s why academic surgical departments across the globe hold weekly Morbidity and Mortality (M&M) conferences that gather... read more

Surgeons Are Using Social Media to Share and Learn New Skills

Preventing the misuse of ICU visiting hours to reduce inequities

Family participation in healthcare serves to improve outcomes across a broad spectrum of conditions. Current guidelines recommend open family presence in the intensive care unit (ICU) while citing evidence of its safety.... read more

Preventing the misuse of ICU visiting hours to reduce inequities

Doctors Feel What It’s Like to Be in the ICU

Immersive art project lets Mount Sinai staff hear noises and feel confined like intensive-care brain trauma patients; a new view of treating unconscious patients.... read more

Doctors Feel What It’s Like to Be in the ICU

The Business Case for Investing in Physician Well-being

Understanding the business case to reduce burnout and promote engagement as well as overcoming the misperception that nothing meaningful can be done are key steps for organizations to begin to take action. Evidence suggests... read more

The Business Case for Investing in Physician Well-being

The House of God

The House of God is a mesmerizing and provocative novel about Roy Basch and five of his fellow interns at the most renowned teaching hospital in the country. A phenomenon ever since it was published, The House of God was... read more

The House of God

Preventing Harm in the ICU – Building a Culture of Safety and Engaging Patients and Families

Preventing harm remains a persistent challenge in the ICU despite evidence-based practices known to reduce the prevalence of adverse events. This review seeks to describe the critical role of safety culture and patient and... read more

Preventing Harm in the ICU – Building a Culture of Safety and Engaging Patients and Families

Building Critical Care Community Through Twitter Chat

Twitter chats can be a powerful tool for the widespread engagement of a medical audience. Social media sites such as Twitter can significantly enhance education and advocacy efforts. In 2013, the American College of Chest... read more

Building Critical Care Community Through Twitter Chat

Safety Hazards During Intrahospital Transport

A prospective observational study. Data from participant observations of the intrahospital transport process were collected over a period of 3 months. Findings suggest that intrahospital transport is a hazardous process for... read more

Safety Hazards During Intrahospital Transport

The Glass Door of the Patient Room

Poor communication among health-care providers is cited as the most common cause of sentinel events involving patients. Our goal was to create a novel, easily accessible communication device to improve ICU patient care. Due... read more

The Glass Door of the Patient Room

Reduction of Laboratory Utilization in the ICU

In our academic ICU, there is excess ordering of routine laboratory tests. This is partially due to a lack of transparency of laboratory-processing costs and to the admission order plans that favor daily laboratory test orders.... read more

Reduction of Laboratory Utilization in the ICU

Where is the Love in Critical Care?

If we look at any critical care system there are several components that are required to drive quality, safety and ultimately success. The greatest driver of success is ultimately the staff. Staff who feel safe, valued and... read more

The Science and Art of Pediatric Critical Care Nutrition

Malnutrition is prevalent in the pediatric ICU population, and is associated with worse outcomes. Nutrition support teams, dedicated dietitians, and educational programs facilitate surveillance for existing malnutrition and... read more

The Science and Art of Pediatric Critical Care Nutrition

Airport CPR Training Kiosks

Three airports around the U.S. have joined an American Heart Association (AHA) initiative to provide hands-only CPR training kiosks for passengers waiting for flights. The Cleveland Hopkins International, Cincinnati/Northern... read more

Airport CPR Training Kiosks