We are excited to introduce the Fifth edition of The Ottawa Handbook of Emergency Medicine. Your bedside guide for approaches to various Emergency Medicine presentations.
Highlights of the Fifth edition include the addition of: general surgery emergencies, pediatric orthopedic presentations, and updates in pediatric fever + more!
Lactation – A brief guide for the emergency provider
You are seeing your next patient in urgent care, a 35-year-old female with a wrist injury who has been waiting for 6-hours. After sending her for an x-ray and offering pain control in the ED, she tells you she is 3-months post-partum and is currently nursing. She asks...
Transforming Canada’s Healthcare Landscape with Paramedics
Canada's healthcare system, once a source of national pride, is now facing critical challenges that have led many to view it as "unwell" or "sick." Access to healthcare services has become a pressing concern, sparking a call for change and revitalization. The 911...
Experiential learning with a TWIST: Ovarian Torsion
I was in the OR for the first day of my anesthesia rotation when suddenly the pain hit me. It was in my left flank, radiating to my back — so much pain I could hardly think. A flurry of tests later, my ultrasound showed good doppler flow, and my lab work was pristine....
Little People, Big Updates: Updates in Pediatric Emergency Medicine
Do you remember when every newborn under 30 days with a fever needed an LP/admission/blood cultures? Well.. times are a little different but its nuanced. The goal of this update is to provide a practical update in pediatric emergency medicine to the average Canadian...
Taking A Dive Into Diverticulitis
You are treating a 43-year-old male with two days of left lower quadrant abdominal pain, a documented fever of 38.4 and malaise. He has no urinary or bowel symptoms. His past medical history is unremarkable. He looks well by ED standards. After a focused history and...
BHP Corner: Respecting Patient Preferences
Emergency medicine is a fast-paced realm where paramedics and medical professionals must make split-second decisions that often mean the difference between life and death. In this high-stakes environment, understanding and respecting patient preferences while...
Traumatic Cardiac Arrests
According to WHO and CDC: more than nine people die every minute from injuries or violence, and 5.8 million people die every year. It is the leading cause of death in people 1-44 years of age in developed countries (unintentional injuries, homicide, suicide). The...
The Donut of Truth (ahh that CT scan)
In Korea where I (hi!) originally trained, because of fewer human resources (like radiologists), and an abundance of technological resources,(like CT and MRI) emergency physicians often are expected to read their own imaging. There are next-day overreads from...
Burnin’ Up: Thermal Burn Pain Management
Dr. Barnes had previously provided a very thorough guide on burns management, which can be found here. The management of thermal injury has largely stayed the same but there have since been some important points that were highlighted by the ABA Pain management...
Drug Rashes
Drug rashes are fairly common, but like much of dermatology, diagnostic clarification can be hard to achieve. Here, we present a standardized approach to drug rashes in the Emergency Department. Differential Diagnosis Clinical Approach ...