Shooting incidents are occurring throughout the US with increasing and alarming frequency. Among those in late 2013: the Washington, DC, Navy Yard on September 16—12 dead, 3 injured before the gunman took his own life; the Sparks, Nevada middle school on October 21—1 dead, 2 wounded before the student wielding…
Trauma events occur every 5 minutes in the United States, and 30% of trauma patients die within 120 minutes of the event because of major organ injuries that lead to heavy blood loss. Better outcomes are achieved when care is initiated within 60 minutes, a time frame commonly referred to…
A call came over the radio at 12:30 am on July 20, 2012. There had been a shooting at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, with the potential for multiple victims. Emergency department staff at the nearby University of Colorado Hospital (UCH) listened to the call. They didn’t anticipate more…
It started out as a typical Sunday morning on call—a 7:30 am C section, home for a nap, then a call-back at 3 pm for orthopedic cases. But that Sunday, May 22, 2011, turned out to be anything but typical for Staci Perry, a surgical technologist at St John's Regional…
Economic woes and a failing health care system mean more people than ever are relying on emergency care. But emergency physicians give the country a C- for its support for emergency resources. "Emergency medical care is the most overlooked part of our health care system, and the one everyone depends…
How would your OR manage if the hospital was on emergency power for 3 days, there was no running water, and supplies were dwindling? You didn't know when help would arrive. Still, sick and injured patients kept arriving, and families were flocking to your doors. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005,…