Clinical skills
Sutures, procedures, labs, the ECG and OSCE stations.
88 pages
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- ECG tracingBroad-complex tachycardia, VF and the arrest rhythmsDangerous fast rhythms that start in the ventricles, and the four rhythms of cardiac arrest…
- InterpretationArterial blood gas: worked cases for the stationHow to read the oxygen, carbon dioxide and acidity of arterial blood one step at a time, with…
- ProcedureSplints and the plaster backslabA firm support moulded along part of a limb, not all the way round, that holds an injury still…
- ProcedureArthrocentesis of the kneeA needle is passed into the swollen knee to draw off joint fluid, both to find the cause of the…
- ProcedureOpening the airway: head tilt, jaw thrust and simple adjunctsSimple hand movements and small plastic tubes lift the tongue off the back of the throat so air…
- InterpretationReading spirometry: obstructive or restrictive?The patient blows out as hard and as long as possible; how much and how fast air leaves the…
- OSCE stationThe emergency (ABCDE) stationAn OSCE station with an acutely ill or injured simulated patient, where you assess and treat in…
- ProcedureIntraosseous access in an emergencyIn an emergency a needle is placed into the marrow of a bone, usually the shin or shoulder, to…
Areas
- TThe ECG16 pagesBroad-complex tachycardia, VF and the arrest rhythms · Atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter · Hyperkalaemia and other electrolyte changes
- RReading lab results14 pagesArterial blood gas: worked cases for the station · Liver tests: hepatocellular or cholestatic? · The peripheral blood smear: what to look for
- Wounds and sutures12 pagesSplints and the plaster backslab · Animal and human bites: clean, close or leave open · Assessing a wound: close it now, later or never?
- Procedures11 pagesArthrocentesis of the knee · Difficult urethral catheterisation and suprapubic options · Epistaxis: compression, cautery and nasal packing
- Airway and cardiac procedures10 pagesOpening the airway: head tilt, jaw thrust and simple adjuncts · Recording a 12-lead ECG · Transcutaneous pacing
- OOSCE stations9 pagesThe emergency (ABCDE) station · The counselling and explanation station · The physical-examination station: what examiners look for
- VVascular access6 pagesIntraosseous access in an emergency · Balloon tamponade for bleeding varices · Central venous catheter: sites, Seldinger technique and checks
- Other investigations10 pagesReading spirometry: obstructive or restrictive? · Echocardiography: transthoracic and transoesophageal · Holter and ambulatory blood-pressure monitoring
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About this section
What a doctor does with their hands and reads at the bedside: wounds and sutures, procedures step by step with the reason for each step, vascular access, the airway, how to read a blood count, a chemistry panel or a body fluid, the method for reading an ECG and its classic tracings, and how to prepare the OSCE stations. The examination manoeuvres are in Clinical examination and the nursing procedures in Nursing.
Educational content; it does not replace supervised hands-on training, your institution's protocols or a prescriber's order. A procedure is learnt with a teacher and done only once you are trained to do it.
Representative model, for educational purposes only.