PEDIATRIC SECONDS-TO-MINUTES EMERGENCIES PART 1

Course overview

Seconds-to-minutes emergencies in the Emergency Department frequently manifest as complicated cases requiring immediate evaluation and treatment. Seconds-to-minutes emergencies in the adult population are well delineated, but that is not the case in the pediatric population. In the pediatric population, seconds-to-minutes emergencies are a common source of great angst for the ED team. Generally, a practitioner will hope for organized chaos in these situations at best. Thus, it is critical to have a clearly defined list of diagnoses of common pediatric medical problems and illnesses that need to be considered in the time frame of seconds-to-minutes. Goals for the ED team should include early recognition of seconds-to-minutes emergencies, expedited evaluation and treatment, and the assignment of tasks to team members. In addition, early communication with consultants is critical. This activity is the first of two that review 10 diagnoses (5 per activity) in the pediatric population; the activities provide an in-depth understanding of seconds-to-minutes emergencies as a foundation for treating children with medical problems who need immediate attention and evaluation. A case study of each diagnosis is provided as an example of how to identify and treat these potentially critically ill children. The cases give examples of how these patients may present as well as some common scenarios in the ED. They also demonstrate some of the pitfalls you may encounter when dealing with this patient population. The scenarios not only teach about specific disease processes, but also offer valuable talking points for the medical team. After completing this activity, practitioners should be able to: identify key signs and symptoms of seconds-to-minutes emergencies in pediatric patients; select appropriate diagnostic tests for rapid evaluation and diagnosis of pediatric patients experiencing seconds-to-minutes emergencies; and identify key information for the medical team to communicate during the evaluation of pediatric patients experiencing seconds-to-minutes emergencies.