Essentials 1 Wellness is integral to performance and the ability to provide high-quality patient care. 2 Emergency physicians are at high risk of poor physical and mental health, including compassion fatigue and burnout. 3 Work-related distress is common. There is…
Essentials 1 Approximately 1 in 10 hospital patients experiences an adverse event, of which half may be attributed to clinical error and one-third results in significant harm or death. 2 Emergency medicine faces particular challenges to safe patient care due…
Essentials 1 Complaints occur in every emergency department. They can be considered useful feedback. 2 Good complaints management involves being open to complaints and seeing them as an opportunity for improvement. 3 The majority of complaints are at least partly…
Essentials 1 Postgraduate medical training in the United Kingdom has become increasingly regulated and controlled by the General Medical Council (GMC). 2 Changes to immigration rules have occurred in response to insufficient training opportunities for UK and European graduates. This…
Essentials 1 Specialist training in emergency medicine (EM) in Australia and New Zealand is the responsibility of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine (ACEM). 2 Specialist international medical graduates require recognition from either the Australian Medical Council or the Medical…
Essentials 1 Organizational business planning describes the strategies an organization will take to achieve the goals of the strategic plan. 2 The emergency department (ED) business plan is an important multipurpose document and informs the organization about the agreed performance…
Essentials 1 Quality improvement offers the tools to translate knowledge into improved patient care. 2 The six key aims for improvement are safety, effectiveness, patient-centeredness, timeliness, efficiency and equitable care. 3 The commonly used quality cycle known as ‘plan, do,…
Essentials 1 The layout of the emergency department should functionally promote efficacy of care, safety and efficient patient flow by maximizing access to every space with the minimum of cross-traffic. 2 The triage location should enable staff directly to observe…
Essentials 1 An emergency department staff structure that is appropriate in numbers and skill mix is required to provide high-quality and timely clinical care, while maintaining sustainable working conditions for staff. 2 Senior medical and nursing staff have clinical roles…
Essentials 1 Public health is a key component of a sustainable health system. 2 Emergency medicine has a mandate to advocate for public health initiatives. 3 Acute health care has limited opportunity to affect health care outcomes compared to public…