Subcutaneous Insulin for DKA

In the U.S. most DKA is managed in the ED with IV insulin drips, but short acting subcutaneous regimens can be just as effective. The subcutaneous regimen should utilize asparte not regular insulin and requires dosing at 1hr or 2 hour intervals depending on the chosen protocol.  The subQ regimen is more utilized in Europe but is worth discussing with your pharmacist in order to have an alternative means of managing a DKA patient.… Read more

The Wiki: A Key Social Media Tool

Correspondence in Annals of Emergency Medicine about WikEM’s important place in social media: http://authors.elsevier.com/a/1QkDm_4TJw~Pq0

Blogs, podcasts, videocasts, social networks, and custom search engines are all important resources for stimulating research discussion and improving medical education. However, as acknowledged by Thoma et al, “to make effective use of this stream of knowledge, learners must filter and choose from myriad resources.”2 We suggest that the wiki is a key social media tool to organize and summarize this growing body of online information. It also has the added benefit of providing easy access to consensus information in the middle of a shift, allowing clinicians to provide better care while at the bedside.

doi:10.1016/j.annemergmed.2014.12.017Read more

Get credit for resident reading electives and asynchronous learning activities, while supporting open access medicine!

Are you a resident who would like to get credit for time spent editing WikEM or a faculty member looking for a free and easy way to document reading elective and/or asynchronous learning activities?  Support open access medicine!  Use the WikEM elective and asynchronous learning platform, supported by the non-profit OpenEM Foundation.
Contributions to WikEM benefit medical practitioners around the globe, while being immediately available to the contributor, their fellow residents, and their residency program via the WikEM website and its native mobile applications.
Many EM residency programs offer reading electives and/or asynchronous learning  (i.e. “individualized interactive instruction”). However, these activities can be difficult to monitor, leading to numerous problems
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