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Medical emergencies on board commercial airlines: is documentation as expected?

ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to perform a descriptive, content-based analysis on the different forms of documentation for in-flight medical emergencies that are currently provided in the emergency medical kits on board commercial airlines.Passenger airlines in the World Airline Directory were contacted between March and May 2011. For each participating airline, sample in-flight medical emergency documentation forms were obtained. All items in the sample documentation forms were subjected to a descriptive analysis and compared to a sample "medical incident report" form published by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).A total of 1,318 airlines were contacted. Ten airlines agreed to participate in the study and provided a copy of their documentation forms. A descriptive analysis revealed a total of 199 different items, which were summarized into five sub-categories: non-medical data (63), signs and symptoms (68), diagnosis (26), treatment (22) and outcome (20).The data in this study illustrate a large variation in the documentation of in-flight medical emergencies by different airlines. A higher degree of standardization is preferable to increase the data quality in epidemiologic aeromedical research in the future.

SUBMITTER: Sand M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3681367 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Medical emergencies on board commercial airlines: is documentation as expected?

Sand Michael M Morrosch Stephan S Sand Daniel D Altmeyer Peter P Bechara Falk G FG

Critical care (London, England) 20121212 2

<h4>Introduction</h4>The purpose of this study was to perform a descriptive, content-based analysis on the different forms of documentation for in-flight medical emergencies that are currently provided in the emergency medical kits on board commercial airlines.<h4>Methods</h4>Passenger airlines in the World Airline Directory were contacted between March and May 2011. For each participating airline, sample in-flight medical emergency documentation forms were obtained. All items in the sample docu ...[more]

PMID: 22397530

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Project description:BACKGROUND:The aims of this study were to survey the occurrence of acute medical situations in Dutch orthodontic practice and to examine the self-perceived competence of orthodontists in managing acute medical emergencies. METHODS:A self-designed questionnaire was distributed among all 149 Dutch orthodontists attending the spring meeting of the Dutch Society for Orthodontists. The questionnaire was divided into three parts, addressing background information of the orthodontist, precautions against and experiences in acute medical situations, and self-perceived competence of nine common medical emergencies. The statistical analysis was performed using the chi-square test and a multiple logistic regression analysis. RESULTS:The response rate was 74.5% (105 out of 149). The male to female ratio in this population was 55:50. Mean age of all participants was 46.9 years (SD 10.4 years) with on average 16.7 years of working experience (SD 10.6 years). The most common medical emergency reported by Dutch orthodontists was vasovagal collapse (n = 219), followed by acute allergic reaction (n = 163) and hyperventilation (n = 83). On average, 75% (n = 79) of the orthodontists felt competent to handle any acute medical situation with an average occurrence of 0.36 acute medical emergencies per orthodontist per year. Male participants were more likely to send patients towards the emergency department (p = 0.049). Moreover, a statistically significant negative correlation was observed between self-perceived competence handling hypoglycemia and years of clinical experience. The longer orthodontists were clinically active, the less competent they felt when encountered with a hypoglycemia (p = 0.031). CONCLUSIONS:Medical emergencies may be rare but challenging occurrences in the orthodontic practice. It is strongly recommended for all orthodontists and supporting staff to be trained regularly in the management of medical emergencies and to possess up-to-date evidence-based knowledge. Familiarity with and availability of appropriate drugs and equipment are deemed essential to the management of acute medical emergencies that may arise in the orthodontic practice.

Project description:Objectives: Advising patients seeking medical guidance while communicating with them via telephone is a highly relevant skill in clinical daily life. However, telephone consultations differ from face-to-face interactions: clinical examination is nearly impossible and visual signals cannot be observed. Thus, telephone consultations require specific skills training. This article describes the development, implementation and evaluation of a course, "Telephone Consultation for Medical Emergencies", for 5th year medical students at the University of Bern, Switzerland. Methods: Following the evidence in the literature for telephone consultations, we developed guidelines for effective communication via telephone. After self-study of preparatory material, learners engaged in telephone consultations with simulated patients (SP) at the simulation center. They received multi-dimensional feedback regarding the encounter. Results: The course was successfully implemented in 2012. Evaluations showed the course to be well-received by students. In a survey, students agreed that they had learned many new skills and that they considered this learning as being important in their future employment. They felt that the SP feedback was helpful and that being observed by peer-students during the encounter or filling in a checklist while observing peer-students in other encounters added to their learning. During the debriefing of the simulation with a clinical expert, students judged the scenarios as realistic and relevant, praised the SP performances and identified that the most instructive aspect of the training was the opportunity to practice and to get feedback. Conclusion: Telephone consultations require specific skills that should be trained. The current Covid-19 pandemic and the recommendations of government institutions for patients to contact healthcare professionals primarily via telephone stress the importance of adequately training these skills. In this publication we describe a feasible and viable format for implementing this process.

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Medical emergencies on board commercial airlines: is documentation as expected?

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Medical emergencies on board commercial airlines: is documentation as expected?

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