Introduction: Frailty is a state of vulnerability affecting older adults, and has been associated with adverse events such as increased risk of institutionalization, falls, functional decline, and mortality. Previous research suggests that emergency department (ED) physicians are much less comfortable managing the complex care needs of frail, older adults. The objective of this study was to identify successful strategies and expert skills that ED physicians possess to optimally manage the frail, older patient. Methods: An interpretive descriptive qualitative study was conducted. One of the investigators contacted the site leads of 12 academic and community EDs across Canada to identify ED physicians who they perceived as being highly skilled in the care of frail, older patients. 22 individual physicians were identified and 13 physicians representing 10 EDs were invited to participate in a 30-minute semi-structured interview. Transcripts were coded by two members of the research team. Data collection is ongoing and analyses will occur until thematic saturation. Results: All participants indicated they were very comfortable managing the frail, older patient in the ED. Awareness of issues related to this patient population were triggered by both clinical and personal experiences, as well as institutional priorities. When asked how they developed their specific skills for this patient population, participants stated they received limited formal training during residency and early practise, but relied on situational learning, access to role models and engagement in self-directed learning. Participants identified three predominant management strategies for the care of the frail, older patient: thorough patient interaction at the start of the clinical encounter to maximize efficiency; engaging in teamwork to manage complex issues; and early involvement of the family/caregivers. Interestingly, not all participants used the term frailty, however most reflected principles of the concept in their discussion. Conclusion: Currently, principles of caring for frail, older adults are not widespread in emergency medicine residency training. These findings suggest that frailty care frequently requires an alternative clinical approach, which is often derived from personal experience, self-directed and experiential learning. Future educational initiatives should derive, implement and evaluate a wide-spread curriculum to teach the skills required to optimally care for these patients.

Introduction: The radiological and clinical follow-up of patients with a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and an intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) is often heterogeneous, as there is no official guideline for CT scan control. Furthermore, public sector health expenditure has increased significantly as the number of MRI and CT scan almost doubled in Canada in the last decade. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to describe the current management practices of mTBI patients with intracranial hemorrhage at two level-1 trauma centers. Methods: Design: An historical cohort was created at the CHU de Québec – Hôpital de l'Enfant-Jésus (Québec City) and Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur (Montréal). Consecutive medical records were reviewed from the end of 2017 backwards until sample saturation using a standardized checklist. Participants: mTBI patients aged ⩾16 with an ICH were included. Measures: The main and secondary outcomes were the presence of a control CT scan and neurosurgical consultation/admission. Analyses: Univariate descriptive analyses were performed. Inter-observer measures were calculated. Results: Two hundred seventy-four patients were included, of which 51.1% (n = 140) came from a transfer. Mean age was 60.8 and 68.9% (n = 188) were men. Repeat CT scan was performed in 73.6% (n = 201) of our patients as 12.5% showed a clinical deterioration. The following factors might have influenced clinician decision to proceed to a repeat scan: anticoagulation (association of 87.1% with scanning; n = 27), antiplatelet (84.1%; 58), GCS of 13 (94.1%; 16), GCS of 14 (75%; 72) and GCS of 15 (70.2%; 111). 93.0% (n = 254) of patients had a neurosurgical consultation and only 6.7% (17) underwent a neurosurgical intervention. Conclusion: The management of mild traumatic brain injury with hemorrhage uses a lot of resources that might be disproportionate with regards to risks. Further research to identify predictive factors of deterioration is needed.

Introduction: Endotracheal intubation (ETI) is a lifesaving procedure commonly performed by emergency department (ED) physicians that may lead to patient discomfort or adverse events (e.g., unintended extubation) if sedation is inadequate. No ED-based sedation guidelines currently exist, so individual practice varies widely. This study's objective was to describe the self-reported post-ETI sedation practice of Canadian adult ED physicians. Methods: An anonymous, cross-sectional, web-based survey featuring 7 common ED scenarios requiring ETI was distributed to adult ED physician members of the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians (CAEP). Scenarios included post-cardiac arrest, hypercapnic and hypoxic respiratory failure, status epilepticus, polytrauma, traumatic brain injury, and toxicology. Participants indicated first and second choice of sedative medication following ETI, as well as bolus vs. infusion administration in each scenario. Data was presented by descriptive statistics. Results: 207 (response rate 16.8%) ED physicians responded to the survey. Emergency medicine training of respondents included CCFP-EM (47.0%), FRCPC (35.8%), and CCFP (13.9%). 51.0% of respondents work primarily in academic/teaching hospitals and 40.4% work in community teaching hospitals. On average, responding physicians report providing care for 4.9 ± 6.8 (mean ± SD) intubated adult patients per month for varying durations (39.2% for 1–2 hours, 27.8% for 2–4 hours, and 22.7% for ≤1 hour). Combining all clinical scenarios, propofol was the most frequently used medication for post-ETI sedation (38.0% of all responses) and was the most frequently used agent except for the post-cardiac arrest, polytrauma, and hypercapnic respiratory failure scenarios. Ketamine was used second most frequently (28.2%), with midazolam being third most common (14.5%). Post-ETI sedation was provided by > 98% of physicians in all situations except the post-cardiac arrest (26.1% indicating no sedation) and toxicology (15.5% indicating no sedation) scenarios. Sedation was provided by infusion in 74.6% of cases and bolus in 25.4%. Conclusion: Significant practice variability with respect to post-ETI sedation exists amongst Canadian emergency physicians. Future quality improvement studies should examine sedation provided in real clinical scenarios with a goal of establishing best sedation practices to improve patient safety and quality of care.

Introduction: Unplanned return visits to the pediatric emergency department contribute to overcrowding and are used as a quality measure. They have not been well characterized in the literature making it difficult to design interventions to reduce unnecessary return visits. The aim of this study was to understand the reasons for return from the caregiver and physician perspective. Methods: This was a cross sectional survey performed on a convenience sample of unplanned return visits within 72 hours at the IWK Health Centre ED between February and October 2016. Exclusion criteria were: planned return visit, admission during the index visit, or triaged as Canadian Triage and Acuity Score (CTAS) 1 on return visit. Caregiver and physician surveys were developed based on themes identified in published literature. The caregiver was approached to complete a survey after triage and the most responsible physician from the return visit was asked to complete a survey immediately after discharge of the patient from their care. Demographic and clinical data were collected from the ED record from the index and return visits. The primary outcome measure was most important reason for return from the caregiver perspective. Results: There were 461 return visits during the study period and 67 caregivers (14.5%) were included in the final analysis. The response rate for the physician survey was 71%. Caregivers and physicians reported that the most important reason for return was a perceived progression of illness requiring reassessment (79.1% and 66.7% respectively). The majority of caregivers had a family physician on record (95%) but a minority attempted to access their family physician (19.4%) or a walk-in clinic (11.9%). Of those who contacted their family physician only 3 (23%) were offered an appointment within 48 hours and of those who did not contact their family physician 21 (38.2%) stated they would not be able to get an appointment in a reasonable amount of time. Despite this 97% would have trusted their family physician to manage their child's illness. Physicians surveyed stated that the return visit was necessary in 64.6% of cases. Conclusion: Caregivers returned to the ED due to a perceived progression of disease. While some cases may have been appropriate for management in a primary care setting, perceived difficulty with timely access was a barrier. Improved caregiver education about the natural history of disease and the urgency of follow up may reduce return ED visits.

Introduction: Emergency Department (ED) consultations are often necessary for safe and effective patient care. Delays in throughput related to ED consultations can increase a patient's ED length of stay (LOS) and contribute to ED crowding. This review aimed to characterize and evaluate interventions to improve consultation metrics. Methods: Eight primary literature databases and the grey literature were comprehensively searched. Comparative studies of interventions to improve ED consultation metrics were included. Unique citations were screened for relevance and the full-texts of relevant articles were reviewed by two independent reviewers. Data on study characteristics and outcomes were extracted in duplicate onto standardized forms. Disagreements were resolved through consensus. Categorical variables are reported as proportions. Continuous variables are reported as the median of the means and total range. Results: After screening 2632 unique citations and 19 from the grey literature items, 24 studies were included. Seventeen interventions targeted specific conditions or speciality services, while the remainder targeted all ED presentations. Interventions fell into three broad categories: strategies to expedite patient care, including clinical pathways (42%); interventions to improve consultant responsiveness (33%); and addition of a specialized care team to the ED (25%). Overall, eight studies reported on the overall proportion of consults in the ED, of which six reported an increase in the consultation proportion (median: +0.6%, range: −11.3% to +49.6%). Six studies reported the proportion of consulted patients who were admitted, of which four reported an increase (median: +1.1%, range: −5.9% to +3.5%). On the other hand, six of seven studies reporting on time from request to consult arrival reported a decrease (median: −25 minutes, range: −66 to +3.8 minutes). Similarly, overall ED LOS was reported to be lower in 17/19 studies reporting this metric (median: −47.6 minutes, range: −600 minutes to +59 minutes). Conclusion: A variety of strategies have been employed to improve ED consultation processes and outcomes. Neither the proportion of consulted patients in the ED nor the proportion of admissions were improved; however, interventions appeared successful at improving consultant arrival times and overall ED LOS. Improvements in consultation processes may be an effective strategy to improve ED throughput and thereby reduce ED crowding.

Introduction: Clinicians treating children in the emergency department (ED) are especially concerned with the efficacy and safety of imaging. Interventions to limit imaging have been proposed to maximize benefits and avoid risks; however, the types and effectiveness of interventions employed in pediatric EDs have not been examined in detail. Methods: Electronic databases and grey literature were systematically searched by a medical librarian. Comparative studies of ED-based interventions reporting computed tomography (CT), radiography (XR), or ultrasound (US) outcomes were included. Interventions introducing new imaging equipment or personnel to the ED, ED diversion strategies, and pre-admission protocols were excluded. At least two independent reviewers assessed each study for inclusion based on pre-defined criteria and extracted data. Disagreements were resolved through consensus. Descriptive results are reported. Results: Overall, 38 pediatric studies were included. Most (66%) interventions implemented two or more components; the most common intervention components were clinical guidelines or pathways (87%) and education or information (66%). Studies were categorized by presentation type: traumatic (n = 27); non-traumatic (n = 19), or combined ‘all-comers’ (n = 2). Included studies reported 62 imaging outcomes (CT = 29; XR = 20; US = 13). Among traumatic studies, 26 imaging outcomes were reported; CT was the most commonly reported outcome (CT = 15; XR = 9; US = 1). Of the CT outcomes, 33% reported significant decreases and five decreased but were either not significant or did not report significance. XR significantly decreased in 44% (4/9). In the non-traumatic studies, the most common imaging outcome remained CT (12 outcomes); 58% of which reported significant decreases. XR was the second most frequent outcome, with 63% reporting significant reductions. Combined success of the interventions to reduce CT and XR was 60%. Reported changes in ordering were less consistent in US. Conclusion: Multifaceted passive interventions have been implemented to reduce imaging in pediatric EDs. Most reported some success changing ordering practices, specifically among patients with non-trauma presentations. Future research exploring relationships between intervention content, effectiveness, and fidelity may provide insight into how to develop more effective interventions to change image ordering in the ED and guide which presentations to target.

Introduction: Patients with concussion often present to the emergency department (ED). Current guidelines recommend graded return to work and physical activity (i.e., sport, recreation and exercise activities); however, whether emergency physicians target this advice based on patient-reported activities is unknown. This study aimed to assess mismatches between physicians’ rest and return-to-activity advice and self-reported pre-injury work and physical activity of adult concussion patients. Methods: Adults (>17 years) presenting with a concussion from April 2013 to April 2015 to a study ED with Glasgow coma scale score ≥13 were recruited by on-site research assistants. Data on patient characteristics (i.e., age, sex, employment, and physical activity level) and activity leading to injury were collected from structured patient interviews. A structured questionnaire collected data from the treating physician about discharge advice provided. “Working” was defined as employed or enrolled in any level of school at the time of injury. “Physically active” was defined by reporting regular exercise (≥2 times a week) or concussed during a sports-related activity. Proportions or medians (interquartile range [IQR]) are reported, as appropriate. Results: Physician questionnaires were completed for 198/248 enrolled patients (median age: 37 years [IQR: 23, 49]; 46% male). Overall, 89% (177/198) were working; 110/177 (62%) received return-to-work advice, while 10/21 (48%) patients also received return-to-work advice, despite not working. Mentally strenuous work/school duties were reported by 143 patients, of which 85 (60%) were recommended cognitive rest. Overall, 148 patients were physically active and 115 (78%) of these were recommended physical rest while 124 (82%) were advised on safe return to physical activity. On the other hand, 35/50 (70%) patients who were not physically active received advice on safe return to physical activity. Sustaining a sports-related injury significantly increased the likelihood of safe return to physical activity advice among physically active patients (Fisher's exact p = 0.001). Conclusion: There is a mismatch between concussed patients’ pre-injury activities, and the rest and return-to-activity (i.e., work and physical activity) advice provided by emergency physicians. The possible effect of this mismatch on patient outcomes should be assessed in future research, as should strategies to improve emergency physician-patient communications around concussion management.

Introduction: Patients with advanced or end-stage illness frequently present to emergency departments (EDs), many of whom are in need of palliative care (PC). Emergency physicians have struggled in providing high quality care to these patients and there is a need to identify cost-effective PC interventions delivered in the ED to improve patient outcomes. The objective of this systematic review was to examine the effectiveness of ED-based PC interventions. Methods: A comprehensive search of nine electronic databases and grey literature sources was conducted to identify any comparative studies assessing the effectiveness of ED-based PC interventions to improve health outcomes of patients with advanced or end-stage illness. Two independent reviewers completed study selection, quality assessment, and data extraction. Differences were mediated via third-party adjudication. Relative risks (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using a random effects model and heterogeneity (I2) was reported. Results: From 5882 potentially eligible citations, 12 studies were included. Two studies are currently on-going clinical trials, and as such, 10 studies were included in this analysis. The studies consisted of before-after studies (n = 5), RCTs (n = 4), and an observational cohort (n = 1). Interventions assessed among the included studies consisted primarily of ED-directed PC consultations (n = 6), while other studies assessed screening of patients with advanced or end-stage illness and PC needs (n = 2), education on PC for ED-staff (n = 1), and an ED-based critical care unit (n = 1). Infrequent reporting of important outcomes (e.g., Mortality, ED relapse) limited the ability of this review to conduct meaningful meta-analysis. There was no difference in patient mortality between two studies assessing ED-directed PC consultations (RR = 0.89; 95% CI: 0.71, 1.13; I2 = 0%). One before-after study (RR = 0.73; 95% CI: 0.47, 1.13) and two RCTs (RR = 2.19; 95% CI: 0.40, 11.92; I2 = 96%) did not identify significant differences in PC consultations intervention (implementation of ED-directed PC consultations) and control (usual care) patients. Conclusion: This review found limited evidence to support the recommendation of any particular ED-based intervention for patients presenting to the ED with advanced or end-stage illness. High quality studies and standardized outcome reporting are needed to better understand the impact of PC interventions in the ED setting.

Introduction: Depending on the time and day of initial Emergency Department (ED) presentation, some patients may require a return to the ED the following day for ultrasound examination. Return visits for ultrasound may be time and resource intensive for both patients and the ED. Qualitative experience suggests that a percentage of return ultrasounds could be performed at a non-ED facility. Our objective was to undertake a retrospective audit of return for ultrasound usage, patterns and outcomes at 2 academic EDs. Methods: A retrospective review of all adult patients returning to the ED for ultrasound at both LHSC ED sites in 2016 was undertaken. Each chart was independently reviewed by two emergency medicine consultants. Charts were assessed for day and time of initial presentation and return, type of ultrasound ordered, and length of ED stay on initial presentation and return visit. Opinion based questions were considered by reviewers, including urgency of diagnosis clarification required, if symptoms were still present on return, and if any medical or surgical treatment or follow up was arranged based on ultrasound results. Agreement between reviewers was assessed. Results: After eliminating charts for which the return visit was not for a scheduled ultrasound examination, 328 patient charts were reviewed. 63% of patients were female and median [IQR] age was 40 years [27-56]. Abdomen/pelvis represented 50% of the ultrasounds; renal 24%; venous Doppler 15.9%. Symptoms were still present and documented in 79% of cases. 22% of cases required a medical intervention and 9% an immediate surgical intervention. 11% of patients were admitted to hospital on their return visit. Outpatient follow-up based on US results was initiated in 29% of cases. Median [IQR] combined LOS was 479.5 minutes [358.5-621.75]. Agreement between reviewers for opinion based questions was poor (63%-96%). Conclusion: Ideally, formal ultrasound should be available on a 24 hour basis for ED patients in order to avoid return visits. A percentage of return for ultrasound examinations do not result in any significant change in treatment. Emergency departments should consider the development of pathways to avoid return visits for follow up ultrasound when possible. The low incidence of surgical treatment in those returning for US suggests that this population could be served in a non-hospital setting. Further research is required to support this conclusion.

Introduction: Fever is a common presenting complaint in the emergency department (ED). Febrile infants are at particularly high risk of serious bacterial infection including bacterial meningitis. Unfortunately, recommendations as to when to perform a lumbar puncture in febrile infants older than 21 days remain conflicting. Our study seeks to establish the prevalence of bacterial meningitis in infants 22 to 60 days old and to evaluate the performance of our local fever without a source (FWS) workup protocol at identifying bacterial meningitis. Methods: This analysis represents the results of a retrospective cohort study which took place in an academic pediatric ED in Quebec City. Infants 22 to 60 days old investigated for FWS, were included in the study. Premature infants ( <37 weeks), as well as infants with chronic diseases, immunodeficiency, previous antimicrobial therapy, in-dwelling catheters, or septic shock were excluded. We evaluated the performance of our local FWS workup protocol which includes the Yale Scale, a complete blood count, blood culture, C-reactive protein, urinalysis and urine culture. The protocol recommends a lumbar puncture in all febrile infants <1 month old, and in all infants <3 months old with either leukocytes <5.0 or >15.0 X 10^9cells/L, petechia, or a Yale between 11 and 16. Results: We reviewed 1261 charts from 2012 to 2017, of which 920 met our inclusion criteria. In our cohort, 171 infants were 22 to 30 days old, 369 were 31 to 45 days old, and 380 were 46 to 60 days old. The proportion of infants with cerebrospinal fluid analysis in these 3 groups was 76% (n = 130), 25% (n = 98) and 12% (n = 46) respectively. In the entire cohort, two infants were diagnosed with bacterial meningitis resulting in a prevalence of 0.2% (95%CI: 0-0.5%); viral meningitis had a prevalence of 4.7% (95%CI: 3.3-6.1%). Sensitivity and specificity of the protocol were 100% and 52.8%; positive and negative predictive values were 0.4% and 100%, respectively. All charts were reviewed for 2 weeks following the index visit to screen for missed cases of bacterial meningitis. Conclusion: Systematically performing a lumbar puncture for workup of fever without a source in infants 22 to 60 days old appears unwarranted given the low prevalence of bacterial meningitis in this population. Our FWS workup protocol correctly identified the 2 cases of bacterial meningitis in our cohort. This is an ongoing study and more cases will be recruited to better evaluate the safety and performance of our protocol.

Innovation Conept: Evidence-based medicine (EBM), including literature search skills, is an objective of the Emergency Medicine (EM) residency curriculum. Traditional teaching of this topic utilized a classroom-based, librarian-lead session that presented an overview of many search engines. Feedback from past sessions indicated that learners retained little after the session. To be effective, EBM needs to be brought to the bedside. We created a session to engage EM residents and improve their efficiency in literature searching during an EM shift. Methods: We conducted a needs assessment among EM residents in our program. In response to this and to maximize impact of teaching, we created an EBM workshop on literature searching that used a flipped classroom approach and high-fidelity simulation. The session was designed for a small group (12 junior residents), with the goals of being interactive, engaging and practice-relevant. Feedback was collected on the simulation experience. Curriculum, Tool or Material: With a librarian, we created a brief list of EM-relevant databases. It included tips for searching and links to the corresponding sites / apps. Students received the list 7 days prior and were instructed to set up the resources on their smartphones. Pre-readings also covered the hierarchy of evidence and formulating a good clinical (PICO) question. All students participated in the high-fidelity simulation, with one volunteer leader. The case involved a stable patient. Residents proceeded with initial case assessment until they faced a management decision that required a literature search. All residents participated on their smart phones. Collectively, it took 5 minutes to find a study that adequately addressed the clinical question. The patient was managed accordingly and symptoms resolved. Feedback on the simulation was abundantly positive. Students found it engaging, practical and realistic. It helped them learn to efficiently search the literature while managing a stable patient. Conclusion: Using a multi-modal teaching strategy that includes simulation makes teaching EBM literature searching more interesting, engaging and applicable to EM practice. Future work will look at creating further sessions to reinforce and promote retention of key concepts and integrate them into EM practice.

Introduction: Long-term immobility has detrimental effects for critically ill patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) including ICU-acquired weakness. Early mobilization of patients admitted to ICU has been demonstrated to be a safe, feasible and effective strategy to improve patient outcomes. The optimal mobilization of trauma ICU patients has not been extensively studied. Our objective was to determine the impact of an early mobilization protocol on outcomes among trauma patients admitted to the ICU. Methods: We analyzed all adult trauma patients ( > 18 years old) admitted to ICU over a 2-year period prior to and following implementation of an early mobilization protocol, allowing for a 1-year transition period. Data were collected from the Nova Scotia Trauma Registry. We compared patient characteristics and outcomes (mortality, length of stay [LOS], ventilator days) between the pre- and post-implementation groups. Associations between early mobilization and clinical outcomes were estimated using binary and linear regression models. Results: Overall, there were 526 patients included in the analysis (292 pre-implementation, 234 post-implementation). The study population ranged in age from 18 to 92 years (mean age 49.0 ± 20.4 years) and 74.3% of all patients were male. The pre- and post-implementation groups were similar in age, sex, and injury severity. In-hospital mortality was reduced in the post-implementation group (25.3% vs. 17.5%; p = 0.031). In addition, there was a reduction in ICU mortality in the post-implementation group (21.6% vs. 12.8%; p = 0.009). We did not observe any difference in overall hospital LOS, ICU LOS, or ventilator days between the two groups. Compared to the pre-implementation period, trauma patients admitted to the ICU following protocol implementation were less likely to die in-hospital (OR = 0.52, 95% CI 0.30-0.91; p = 0.021) or in the ICU (OR = 0.40, 95% CI 0.21- 0.76, p = 0.005). Results were similar following a sensitivity analysis limited to patients with blunt or penetrating injuries. There was no difference between the pre- and post-implementation groups with respect to in-hospital LOS, ICU LOS, or the number of ventilator days. Conclusion: We found that trauma patients admitted to ICU during the post-implementation period had decreased odds of in-hospital mortality and ICU mortality. Ours is the first study to demonstrate a significant reduction in trauma mortality following implementation of an ICU mobility protocol.

Introduction: Previous systematic reviews suggest early mobilization in the intensive care unit (ICU) population is feasible, safe, and may improve outcomes. Only one review investigated mobilization specifically in trauma ICU patients and failed to identify any relevant articles. The objective of the present systematic review was to conduct an up-to-date search of the literature to assess the effect of early mobilization in adult trauma ICU patients on mortality, length of stay (LOS) and duration of mechanical ventilation. Methods: We performed a systematic search of four electronic databases (Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Cochrane Library) and the grey literature. To be included, studies must have compared early mobilization to delayed or no mobilization among trauma patients admitted to the ICU. Meta-analysis was performed to determine the effect of early mobilization on mortality, hospital LOS, ICU LOS, and duration of mechanical ventilation. Results: The search yielded 2,975 records from the 4 databases and 7 records from grey literature and bibliographic searches; of these, 9 articles met all eligibility criteria and were included in the analysis. There were 7 studies performed in the United States, 1 study from China and 1 study from Norway. Study populations included neurotrauma (3 studies), blunt abdominal trauma (2 studies), mixed injury types (2 studies) and burns (1 study). Cohorts ranged in size from 15 to 1,132 patients (median, 63) and varied in inclusion criteria. Most studies used some form of stepwise progressive mobility protocol. Two studies used simple ambulation as the mobilization measure, and 1 study employed upright sitting as their only intervention. Time to commencement of the intervention was variable across studies, and only 2 studies specified the timing of mobilization initiation. We did not detect a difference in mortality with early mobilization, although the pooled risk ratio (RR) was reduced (RR 0.90, 95% CI 0.74 to 1.09). Hospital LOS and ICU LOS were decreased with early mobilization, though this difference did not reach significance. Duration of mechanical ventilation was significantly shorter in the early mobilization group (mean difference −1.18. 95% CI −2.17 to −0.19). Conclusion: Our review identified few studies that examined mobilization of critically ill trauma patients in the ICU. On meta-analysis, early mobilization was found to reduce duration of mechanical ventilation, but the effects on mortality and LOS were not significant.

Introduction: Early and accurate diagnosis of critical conditions is essential in emergency medical services (EMS). Serum lactate testing may be used to identify patients with worse prognosis, including sepsis. Recently, the use of a point-of-care lactate (POCL) test has been evaluated in guiding treatment in patients with sepsis. Operating as part of the Prehospital Evidence Based Practice (PEP) Program, the authors sought to identify and describe the body of evidence for POCL use in EMS and the emergency department (ED) for patients with sepsis. Methods: Following PEP methodology, in May 2018, PubMed was searched in a systematic manner. Title and abstract screening were conducted by the program coordinator. These studies were collected, appraised and added to the existing body of literature contained within the PEP database. Evidence appraisal was conducted by two reviewers who assigned both a level of evidence (LOE) on a novel three tier scale and a direction of evidence (supportive, neutral or opposing; based on primary outcome). Data on setting and study design were also extracted. Results: Eight studies were included in our analysis. Three of these studies were conducted in the ED setting; each investigating the POCL test's ability to predict severe sepsis, ICU admission or death. All three studies found supportive results for POCL. A systematic review on the use of POCL in the ED determined that this test can also improve time to treatment. Five of the total 8 studies were conducted prehospitally. Two of these studies were supportive of POCL use in the prehospital setting; in terms of feasibility and the ability to predict sepsis. Both of these study sites used this early information as part of initiating a “sepsis alert” pathway. The other three prehospital studies provide neutral support for POCL. One study demonstrated moderate ability of POCL to predict severe illness. Two studies found poor agreement between prehospital POCL and serum lactate values. Conclusion: Limited low and moderate quality evidence suggest POCL may be feasible and helpful in predicting sepsis in the prehospital setting. However, there is sparse and inconsistent support for specific important outcomes, including accuracy.

Introduction: In 2016, a team at McMaster began developing GridlockED, an educational (or “serious”) board game designed to teach medical learners about patient flow in the emergency department. As serious board games are a relatively new phenomenon in medical education, there is little data on how marketed games are actually used once received by end-users. In this study our goal was to better understand the demographics and game usage for purchasers of the GridlockED board game, which will inform the further improvement or expansion of the game. Methods: Individuals who expressed interest in purchasing gridlockED via our online storefront were sent an anonymous online survey via Google Form. The survey collected demographic and qualitative data with a focus on the respondent's role in medicine, how they have used GridlockED, who they have played GridlockED with, and what changes or additions to GridlockED they would like to see. We also asked about changes for a potential mass-market version of the game targeted towards non-medical individuals. Individuals who did not purchase the game were asked about their barriers to purchase. We received an exemption for this study from our institutional review board. Results: 42 responses (out of 300 individuals on our mailing list, 14% response rate) were collected. Responding purchasers were from 16 different roles in healthcare and 11 different countries. The top 5 roles were: EM trainee, Community EM MD, Academic EM MD, Physicians from other specialties, and EM program director. The majority of respondents were Canadian (38%), with America (21%), New Zealand (10%), and Turkey (7%) the only other countries to have more than 2 respondents. 50% reported having played the game, with the most common use cases being for fun (76%), for teaching trainees (33%) or training with colleagues (19%). For those who did not purchase, price was the largest barrier (81%). 50% of respondents expressed interest in a disaster scenario expansion pack, with 33% interested in set lesson plans. Conclusion: GridlockED attracted interest from a wide range of medical professionals, both in terms or role and location. Users mainly reported using the game for fun, with fewer users using the game for teaching/training purposes. The main barrier to purchase was the game's price.

Introduction: Chest tube insertion, a critical procedure with a published complication rate (30%), is a required competency for emergency physicians. Microskills training has been shown to identify steps that require deliberate practice. Objectives were: 1. Develop a chest tube insertion microskills checklist to facilitate IPE, 2. Compare the microskills checklist with published best available evidence, 3. Develop an educational video based on the process map, 4. Evaluate the video in an interprofessional team prior to cadaver training as a proof of concept. Methods: The study was conducted between March 2018 and November 2018. An initial list of process steps from the best available evidence was produced. This list was then augmented by multispecialty team consensus (3 Emergency Physicians, 1 Thoracic Surgeon, 1 medical student, 2 EM nurses). Two prototyping phases were conducted using a task trainer and a realistic interprofessional team (1 EM Physician, 1 ER Nurse, 1 Medical student). A final microskills list was produced and compared to the procedural steps described in consensus publications. An educational video was produced and evaluated by an interprofessional team prior to cadaver training using a survey and Likert scales as a proof of concept. Participants were 7 EM RNs and 6 ATLS trained physicians. Participants were asked to fill out a nine-question survey, using a 5-point Likert Scale (1-strongly disagree to 5 strongly agree). Results: The final process map contained 54 interdisciplinary steps, compared to ATLS that describes 14 main steps and peer reviewed articles that describe 9 main steps. The microskills checklist described, in more detail, the steps that relate to team interaction and the operational environment. Physicians rated the training video were able to apply what they learned in the video with an average of 4.67 (median of 5, mode of 5, and an IQR of 0.75). Conclusion: The development of the process maps and microkills checklists provides interprofessional teams with more information about chest tube insertion than instructions described in commonly available courses and procedural steps derived by consensus.

Introduction: Emergency Department (ED) visits related to substance use are rapidly increasing. Despite this, few Canadian EDs have immediate access to addiction medicine specialists or on-site addiction medicine clinics. This study characterized substance-related ED presentations to an urban tertiary care ED and assessed need for an on-site rapid-access addiction clinic (RAAC). Methods: This prospective enrollment, retrospective chart review was conducted from June to August 2018. Adult patients presenting to the ED with a known or suspected substance use disorder were enrolled by any member of their ED care team using a 1-page form. Retrospective chart review of the index ED visit was conducted and the Emergency Department Information System was used to extract information related to the visit. A multivariable logistic regression model was fit to examine factors associated with recommendation for referral to a hypothetical on-site RAAC.This prospective enrollment, retrospective chart review was conducted from June to August 2018. Adult patients presenting to the ED with a known or suspected substance use disorder were enrolled by any member of their ED care team using a 1-page form. Retrospective chart review of the index ED visit was conducted and the Emergency Department Information System was used to extract information related to the visit. A multivariable logistic regression model was fit to examine factors associated with recommendation for referral to a hypothetical on-site RAAC. Results: Of the 557 enrolment forms received, 458 were included in the analysis. 64% of included patients were male and 36% were female, with a median age of 35.0 years. Polysubstance use was seen in 23% of patients, and alcohol was the most common substance indicated (60%), followed by stimulants (32%) and opioids (16%). The median ED length of stay for included patients was 483 minutes, compared to 354 minutes for all-comers discharged from the ED during the study period. 28% of patients had a previous ED visit within 7 days of the index visit, and an additional 17% had a visit in the preceding 30 days. The ED care team indicated ‘Yes’ for RAAC referral from the ED for 66% of patients, for a mean of 4.3 patients referred per day during the study period. Multivariable analysis showed that all substances (except cannabis) correlated to a statistically significant increase in likelihood for indicating ‘Yes’ for RAAC referral from the ED (alcohol, stimulants, opioids, polysubstance; p < 0.05). Patients presenting to the ED with a chief complaint related to substance use were also more likely to be referred (p = 0.01). Conclusion: This retrospective chart review characterized substance-related presentations at a Canadian urban tertiary care ED. Approximately four patients per day would have been referred to an on-site RAAC had one been available. The RAAC model has been implemented in other Canadian hospitals, and collaborating with these sites to begin developing this service would be an important next step.

Introduction: A crucial component of a hospital's disaster plan is an efficient staff recall communication method. Many hospitals use a “calling tree” protocol to contact staff members and recall them to work. Alternative staff recall methods have been proposed and explored. Methods: An unannounced, multidisciplinary, randomized emergency department (ED) staff recall drill was conducted at night - when there is the greatest need for back-up personnel and staff is most difficult to reach. The drill was performed on December 14, 2017 at 4:00AM and involved ED staff members from three hospitals which are all part of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC; Montreal, Quebec, Canada). Three tools were compared: manual phone tree, instant messaging application (IMA), and custom-made hospital Short Message Service (SMS) system. The key outcome measures were proportion of responses at 45 minutes and median response time. Results: One-hundred thirty-two participants were recruited. There were 44 participants in each group after randomization. In the manual phone tree group, 18 (41%) responded within 45 minutes. In the IMA group, 11 participants (25%) responded in the first 45 minutes. In the SMS group, seven participants responded in the first 45 minutes (16%). Manual phone tree was significantly better than SMS with an effect size of 25% (95% confidence interval for effect: 4.6% to 45.0%; P = .018). Conversely, there was no significant difference between manual phone tree and IMA with an effect size of 16% (95% confidence interval for effect: -5.7% to 38.0%; P = .17) There was a statistically significant difference in the median response time between the three groups with the phone tree group presenting the lowest median response time (8.5 minutes; range: 2.0 to 8.5 minutes; P = .000006). Conclusion: Both the phone tree and IMA groups had a significantly higher response rate than the SMS group. There was no significant difference between the proportion of responses at 45 minutes in the phone tree and the IMA arms. This study suggests that an IMA may be a viable alternative to the traditional phone tree method. Limitations of the study include volunteer bias and the fact that there was only one communication drill, which did not allow staff members randomized to the IMA and SMS groups to fully get familiar with the new staff recall methods.

Introduction: Burnout includes emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP) and personal accomplishment (PA). Emergency Department (ED) staff have high levels of burnout that may be responsive to communication skills training. We surveyed ED staff perception of need and efficacy before and after an intervention using an established conflict resolution methodology. Methods: ED physicians, nurses and support staff were surveyed at two regional hospitals using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and a communications questionnaire to establish the perceived need for communication skill training. Participants from one center were provided with a communications intervention (Crucial Conversations®, VitalSmarts®), and a refresher course 6-15 months later. The survey was then repeated at both sites and course participant feedback was elicited. Results: MBI results were high (mean EE = 25.25 (high > 25), 95% CI = 22.5-28; DP = 11.6 (high > 8), 95% CI = 10.1-13.2; PA = 35.85 (low <34), 95% CI = 34.3-37.4). Initially 82% of intervention and 77% of control site participants responded that “attending an educational session about ways to communicate better would help the participants at work”. Post intervention group responses to “The program will be helpful to me in communicating more effectively in my work environment” were: 75% “strongly agree” and 25% “agree”. No rating below “agree” was assigned by any of the participants. Participants preferred facilitated small group simulations and advocated for earlier career implementation. Conclusion: There was a perceived need for and impact from communication skills training for ED staff with high measured burnout. Training may be best implemented in small group simulated encounters and in health professional education curriculum or as part of work orientation.

Introduction: There is increasing evidence supporting ultrasonography for the determination of optimal chest compression location during cardiac arrest. Radiological studies have demonstrated that in up to 1/3 of patients the aortic root or outflow tract is being compressed during standard CPR. Out-of-hospital-cardiac-arrests (OHCA) could benefit from cardiac localization, undertaken with scaled-down ultrasound equipment by which the largest fluid filled structure in the chest (the heart) is identified to guide optimal compression location. We intend to evaluate 1) where the left ventricle is in supine patients, 2) the accuracy and precision as well as 3) the feasibility and reliability of cardiac localization with a scaled down ultrasound device (bladder scanners). Methods: We are recruiting men and women over the age of 40. The scanning protocol involves using a bladder scanner on a 15-point grid over the subject's left chest and parasternal, midclavicular, and anterior axillary intercostal spaces 3-7. Detected volumes will be recorded, with the presumption that the intercostal space with the largest measured volume is centered over the heart. Echocardiography will then be used to confirm the bladder scanner accuracy and to better describe the patient's internal chest anatomy. Having assessed procedural feasibility on 3 pilot subjects, we are now recruiting 100 participants, with planned interim analysis at 50 participants for sample size reassessment. Maximal volume location frequencies from the echocardiograms will be described and assessed for variation utilizing the goodness-of-fit test. The proportion of agreement across the two modalities regarding the maximal volume location will also be examined. Results: Among the 3 volunteers (pilot study), the scanner identified fluid in 4-8 of 15 intercostal spaces. In each of the three pilot study patients, the maximal volume identified by the bladder scanner was found to be at the parasternal location of the 6th intercostal space. This was also the location of the mid left ventricular diameter on echocardiography. Conclusion: Our literature review and pilot study data support the premise that lay persons and emergency medical personnel may improve compressions (and thus outcomes) during OHCA by using a scaled-down ultrasound to identify the location of optimal compression. We are currently enrolling patients in our study.