COIN is dead - long live transformation

Donald Rumsfeld was right. Force transformation works. The techniques that led to the initial victories in Afghanistan in 2001 were precisely those that produced success in Libya in 2011.1 Small-scale deployments of special forces backed by precision strike and deep attack capabilities used to support an allied indigenous armed group proved an effective military tool for achieving specific strategic outcomes. In contrast, the results of large-scale troop deploy- ments as part of counterinsurgency (COIN), stabilization and nation-building activities over the past ten years in Iraq and Afghanistan have been less defini- tive. Despite intensive investment in blood, treasure, and military effort, the precise long-term outcomes of these two campaigns remain unclear and will be open to debate for years to come. This challenging operational experience has, however, highlighted some necessary and enduring truths about the use of military force. This paper explores those in light of the last ten years of counterinsurgenc

How events in emergency medicine impact doctors' psychological well-being

© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2018. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ. Background: Emergency medicine is a high-pressured specialty with exposure to disturbing events and risk. We conducted a qualitative study to identify which clinical events resulted in emotional disruption and the impact of these events on the well-being of physicians working in an ED. Methods: We used the principles of naturalistic inquiry to conduct narrative interviews with physicians working in the ED at Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, between September and October 2016. Participants were asked, Could you tell me about a time when an event at work has continued to play on your mind after the shift in which it occurred was over?' Data were analysed using framework analysis. The study had three a priori themes reported here. Other emergent themes were analysed separately. Results: We interviewed 17 participants. Within the first a priori theme (clinical events') factors associated with emotional disruption included young or traumatic deaths, patients or situations that physicians could relate to, witnessing the impact of death on relatives, the burden of responsibility (including medical error) and conflict in the workplace. Under theme 2 (psychological and physical effects), participants reported substantial upset leading to substance misuse, sleep disruption and neglecting their own physical needs through preoccupation with caring. Within theme 3 (impact on relationships), many interviewees described becoming withdrawn from personal relationships following clinical events, while others described feeling isolated because friends and family were non-medical. Conclusions: Clinical events encountered in the ED can affect a physician's psychological and physical well-being. For many participants these effects were negative and long lasting

Enhanced triage for patients with suspected cardiac chest pain: the History and Electrocardiogram-only Manchester Acute Coronary Syndromes decision aid.

OBJECTIVES: Several decision aids can 'rule in' and 'rule out' acute coronary syndromes (ACS) in the Emergency Department (ED) but all require measurement of blood biomarkers. A decision aid that does not require biomarker measurement could enhance risk stratification at triage and could be used in the prehospital environment. We aimed to derive and validate the History and ECG-only Manchester ACS (HE-MACS) decision aid using only the history, physical examination and ECG. METHODS: We undertook secondary analyses in three prospective diagnostic accuracy studies that included patients presenting to the ED with suspected cardiac chest pain. Clinicians recorded clinical features at the time of arrival using a bespoke form. Patients underwent serial troponin sampling and 30-day follow-up for the primary outcome of ACS. The model was derived by logistic regression in one cohort and validated in two similar prospective studies. RESULTS: The HE-MACS model was derived in 796 patients and validated in cohorts of 474 and 659 patients. HE-MACS incorporated age, sex, systolic blood pressure plus five historical variables to stratify patients into four risk groups. On validation, 5.5 and 12.1% (pooled total 9.4%) patients were identified as 'very low risk' (potential immediate rule out) with a pooled sensitivity of 99.5% (95% confidence interval: 97.1-100.0%). CONCLUSION: Using only the patient's history and ECG, HE-MACS could 'rule out' ACS in 9.4% of patients while effectively risk stratifying remaining patients. This is a very promising tool for triage in both the prehospital environment and ED. Its impact should be prospectively evaluated in those settings

PROcalcitonin and NEWS2 evaluation for Timely identification of sepsis and Optimal use of antibiotics in the emergency department (PRONTO): protocol for a multicentre, open-label, randomised controlled trial

Introduction: Sepsis is a common, potentially life-threatening complication of infection. The optimal treatment for sepsis includes prompt antibiotics and intravenous fluids, facilitated by its early and accurate recognition. Currently, clinicians identify and assess severity of suspected sepsis using validated clinical scoring systems. In England, the National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) has been mandated across all National Health Service (NHS) trusts and ambulance organisations. Like many clinical scoring systems, NEWS2 should not be used without clinical judgement to determine either the level of acuity or a diagnosis. Despite this, there is a tendency to overemphasise the score in isolation in patients with suspected infection, leading to the overprescription of antibiotics and potentially treatment-related complications and rising antimicrobial resistance. The biomarker procalcitonin (PCT) has been shown to be useful in specific circumstances to support appropriate antibiotics prescribing by identifying bacterial infection. PCT is not routinely used in the care of undifferentiated patients presenting to emergency departments (EDs), and the evidence base of its optimal usage is poor. The PROcalcitonin and NEWS2 evaluation for Timely identification of sepsis and Optimal (PRONTO) study is a randomised controlled trial (RCT) in adults with suspected sepsis presenting to the ED to compare standard clinical management based on NEWS2 scoring plus PCT-guided risk assessment with standard clinical management based on NEWS2 scoring alone and compare if this approach reduces prescriptions of antibiotics without increasing mortality. Methods and analysis: PRONTO is a parallel two-arm open-label individually RCT set in up to 20 NHS EDs in the UK with a target sample size of 7676 participants. Participants will be randomised in a ratio of 1:1 to standard clinical management based on NEWS2 scoring or standard clinical management based on NEWS2 scoring plus PCT-guided risk assessment. We will compare whether the addition of PCT measurement to NEWS2 scoring can lead to a reduction in intravenous antibiotic initiation in ED patients managed as suspected sepsis, with at least no increase in 28-day mortality compared with NEWS2 scoring alone (in conjunction with local standard care pathways). PRONTO has two coprimary endpoints: initiation of intravenous antibiotics at 3 hours (superiority comparison) and 28-day mortality (non-inferiority comparison). The study has an internal pilot phase and group-sequential stopping rules for effectiveness and futility/safety, as well as a qualitative substudy and a health economic evaluation. Ethics and dissemination: The trial protocol was approved by the Health Research Authority (HRA) and NHS Research Ethics Committee (Wales REC 2, reference 20/WA/0058). In England and Wales, the law allows the use of deferred consent in approved research situations (including ED studies) where the time dependent nature of intervention would not allow true informed consent to be obtained. PRONTO has approval for a deferred consent process to be used. Findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals and presented at scientific conferences. Trial registration number: ISRCTN54006056

Effects of denosumab in patients with bone metastases with and without previous bisphosphonate exposure.

Bone metastases place patients at increased risk of skeletal-related events (SREs), including pathologic fractures, spinal cord compression, severe pain requiring radiotherapy or surgery, and hypercalcemia, because of increased osteoclast-mediated bone resorption. Denosumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody, decreases bone resorption by inhibiting RANKL, which mediates osteoclast activity. We compared the effects of denosumab in two phase 2 studies in patients with bone metastases naive to intravenous bisphosphonate therapy (IV BP; n = 255) and those with elevated levels of the bone resorption marker urinary N-telopeptide (uNTX) despite ongoing IV BP treatment (n = 111). Patients were randomized to receive IV BP every 4 weeks or subcutaneous denosumab every 4 weeks (30/120/180 mg) or every 12 weeks (60/180 mg). Patients treated with denosumab experienced a rapid and sustained reduction in bone turnover regardless of prior IV BP exposure. After 25 weeks, the median uNTX reduction was 75% (IV BP-naive) and 80% (prior IV BP) after denosumab treatment and 71% (IV BP-naive) and 56% (prior IV BP) in the IV BP arms. Denosumab patients with prior IV BP exposure had marked suppression of the osteoclast marker TRAP-5b (median reduction: denosumab 73%, IV BP 11%). SRE incidence was low across both studies. In patients previously treated with BPs, the rate of first on-study SRE was lower in the denosumab groups (8%) than the IV BP group (17%). Denosumab appeared to be well tolerated in both studies. Denosumab suppresses bone resorption markers independently of prior BP treatment, even in patients who appear to respond poorly to BPs.Clinical Trial, Phase IIJournal ArticleMulticenter StudyRandomized Controlled TrialResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tFLWINSCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Social-media-enabled learning in emergency medicine:a case study of the growth, engagement and impact of a free open access medical education blog

Background: Clinicians are increasingly using social media for professional development and education. In 2012, we developed the St. Emlyn's blog, an open access resource dedicated to providing free education in the field of emergency medicine. Objective: To describe the development and growth of this international emergency medicine blog. Method: We present a narrative description of the development of St. Emlyn's blog. Data on scope, impact and engagement were extracted from WordPress, Twitter and Google Analytics. Results: The St. Emlyn's blog demonstrates a sustained growth in size and user engagement. Since inception in 2012, the site has been viewed over 1.25 million times with a linear year-on-year growth. We have published over 500 blog posts, each of which attracts a mean of 2466 views (range 382-69 671). The site has been viewed in nearly every country in the world, although the majority (>75%) of visitors come from the USA, UK and Australia. Summary: This case study of an emergency medicine blog quantifies the reach and engagement of social-media-enabled learning in emergency medicine

The Christian's gift.

Editor: Rufus W. Clark.Mode of access: Internet