The Emergency Department in a hospital is open and staffed 24 hours a day 7 days a week to handle patients who present without prior appointment with a mix of injuries and acute illnesses either by their own means or by that of an ambulance. Check out our resources page for more ED Resources.
Videos
A swallowed ‘timely’ emergency
A swallowed watch (button) battery can cause fatal perforation with mediastinitis if lodged in the oesophagus. The need to removed urgently under general anaesthesia makes this a ‘timely’ emergency.
Adult First Aid Advice & Training
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Paediatric First Aid Advice & Training
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Hands-Only CPR – Videos
If you see a teen or adult suddenly collapse, hands-only CPR is the recommended form of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). It not only increases the likelihood of surviving breathing and cardiac emergencies that occur outside of medical settings, but it’s simple to learn and easy to remember.
When an accident happens
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Machakos County: A Model for Emergency Care in the Counties
Anatomy of the ET Tube
⏺ 15 mm connector – standardized on all airway equipment to avoid a situation where somebody had to look for the right adaptor
⏺ Pilot balloon – contains a spring-loaded one way valve to inflate the balloon.
⏺ One way valve – prevents the air from leaking out when the syringe is disconnected
⏺ Inflatable cuff – has 2 purposes: seals the trachea so that 1) positive pressure can’t escape from lower airways, and 2) seals the trachea so patient doesn’t aspirate any secretions or stomach contents coming from upper airway
⏺ Magill Curve – a natural curvature of approximately 140mm radius, +/- 20mm
⏺ Black line – suggested vocal cords marker
⏺ Size of the ETT – is the internal diameter of the tube
⏺ Depth markings – allow us to measure the depth of the ETT at the teeth or lips (typically 3x size of ETT)
⏺ Radio-opaque line (white here, but I’ve also seen blue!) – helps with the identification of the ETT on X-ray
⏺ Murphy’s Eye – an opening on the right side that allows for ventilation, if the primary opening gets occluded.