Addressing substance use disorder (SUD) remains a pressing issue, not just for healthcare providers but society as a whole. A recent article published in JAMA Network Open, titled "The Decline in Drug Overdose Deaths by Region, Substance, and Demographics," provides critical insights into the changing landscape of drug overdose deaths. We delve into this study for a clearer understanding, breaking it down into 5 sections with key take aways from each.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

Emergency Medicine requires a preparedness for the worst case scenarios, the most critically ill patients, the most complex care, and the most rare procedures that could potentially save a life. That is what we are trying to do at SimKit, by providing education on High Acuity, Low Occurrence (HALO) procedures that delivers to your door.  We were fortunate enough to sit down with Dr. Irvine, a rural physician in  Saskatchewan, Canada and SimKit subscriber, who has taken procedural preparedness to heart to talk about a case of critical illness in a critical access environment.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

In this podcast we review structures for efficient charting and patient care, leading to improved flow and less end-of-shift catch up work. To view the video form of this podcast, check it out on our site.    Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

This episode features the presentation of a complex case involving a patient with altered mental status, facial swelling, and dental pain. The discussion highlights key elements of diagnostic reasoning and the importance of maintaining a broad differential when evaluating high-risk patients. The case ultimately underscores the need for vigilance in recognizing rare but life-threatening conditions and using the history, physical, and work-up to nail the diagnosis.

In this episode, we dive into the case of a patient who presents with facial swelling—a common complaint with a wide differential. We walk through the clinical reasoning process, exploring key questions, potential red flags, and common diagnostic traps. As the case unfolds, we highlight the importance of thinking beyond the obvious before ultimately revealing the true diagnosis. Tune in for a thoughtful discussion packed with pearls you can apply on your next shift.

In this episode, we discuss a procedure so impactful that it can influence the direction of care and the patient’s subsequent hospital course. This procedure is the act of having a serious illness conversation. We talked to Dr. Neena Kashyap, an emergency medicine trained and now palliative care fellow at Cooper University Hospital. After today’s discussion, we hope that you will be better prepared to engage patients and their families in these often difficult conversations.

In this episode, Jason Hine speaks with Rob Orman, a renowned emergency physician and coach, about his career transition from emergency medicine to physician coaching. The conversation covers preventive measures for burnout, effective communication with hospital administrators, strategies for self-care before, during, and after shifts, and the importance of task management. Orman emphasizes the need for personalization and intentional strategies in preventing burnout.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

The American Diabetes Association released a consensus report in 2024 on the management of the hyperglycemic crises: DKA and HHS.  Our goal is to give you some insight into the latest recommendations on the management of these critical presentations using this report and Dr. George Willis as our guide!   In Part II, we continue our deep dive into with a focus on diagnostic criteria updates and new treatment guidelines. We break down the latest consensus statement and discuss how these changes impact clinical practice.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

The American Diabetes Association released a consensus report in 2024 on the management of the hyperglycemic crises: DKA and HHS.  Our goal is to give you some insight into the latest recommendations on the management of these critical presentations using this report and Dr. George Willis as our guide!   In Part I, we discuss epidemiology, pathophysiology, and clinical presentation of DKA/HHS. In Part II, we will discuss diagnosis and clinical management.

Boarding plagues Emergency Departments the country (world?) over. It negatively impacts patient satisfaction, staff wellbeing, patient safety, among others. But what does it cost the hospital/healthcare system?   A recent article in Annals tries to answer that question. We sat down with first author and our friendly neighborhood Operations specialist to look at this article and the true cost of boarding.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

Are you dangerous when it comes to preforming rare procedures like cric, transvenous pacing, and Blakemore tube placement? Do you have a means to keep the rust away? In this podcast we review an article on mental practice and how we all should be practicing to keep ourselves sharp.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

The classic teaching is that calcium's role in hyperkalemia is that of membrane stabilization. However, what if what we were taught was wrong all along? In this quick-hit, we will discuss the role of calcium in hyperkalemia and a new hypothesis that suggests it may all be about cardiac conduction velocity. Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

Managing strokes in the modern era is challenging (lytics, EVT, timestamps!). Doing so in a community hospital- far from the ivory tower endovascular suite and neurology ICU- can be even harder. We sat down with the very smart Dr. Evie Marcolini to talk managing these complex patients in these community settings.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome (PRES) is a clinical condition that we occasionally encounter in the emergency department–and should always have on our differential for patients presenting with neurological complaints. In this episode, we break down the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of PRES, using a clinical case to anchor our discussion. Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

Fever in the infant, particularly those less that 60 days old, presents a diagnostic challenge. Many biomarkers and clinical decision aids have been developed to help the practicing clinician decide who is at risk for a serious or invasive bacterial infection. But what if the fever has only been present a short while? How do these biomarkers and decision aids work very early in the disease process? In this podcast we review an Annals article that helps answer this question.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

Raise a glass to the GRACE-4 guidelines. These are Guidelines for Reasonable and Appropriate Care in the Emergency Department (GRACE). The goal of GRACE is to focus on conditions for which there is wide variation in treatment, for which ED-focused clinical practice guidelines do not already exist, and for which patients have frequent ED revisits.    Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

In this podcast we review both boarding and crowding, the twin kiss of death for an Emergency Department, with Dr. Kraftin Schreyer, an Emergency Medicine physician and ED Administrative Fellowship Director. We discuss boarding and how it can be prevented through surge planning, C-suite buy-in, and cooperation between the in-patient and ED. We then go on to talk about crowding and how it is often a kindred spirit of boarding, but can also exist independently. We discuss options for combating this crowding as well.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

This podcast, catering to in the medical education spectrum, focuses on how to get the most out of your clinical rotations. It involves balancing 4 things. Have a listen to find out what they are, and how to balance them!   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

In this podcast we review the corporate practice of medicine- a touchy topic in Emergency Medicine. Over the last few decades, we have let these corporate agencies into our work environment, with sometimes disastrous results- termination without cause, overbilling, understaffing, just to name a few. Many of these corporate groups have taken heat of late for their shady dealings, but they are still out there, buying up EM physician groups across the country. In this two part podcast we review the history of the more well-known corporate medicine groups, Envision, and how many docs are taking a stand against their practices. In Part 1 we have Dr. Kenan Bouzida, a medical student at Tufts University reviewing the rise and fall of Envision. In Part 2 Kenan is joined by Dr. Bob McNamara, a man who has dedicated much of his life to fighting the corporate practice of medicine.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)

In this podcast we review the corporate practice of medicine- a touchy topic in Emergency Medicine. Over the last few decades, we have let these corporate agencies into our work environment, with sometimes disastrous results- termination without cause, overbilling, understaffing, just to name a few. Many of these corporate groups have taken heat of late for their shady dealings, but they are still out there, buying up EM physician groups across the country. In this two part podcast we review the history of the more well-known corporate medicine groups, Envision, and how many docs are taking a stand against their practices. In Part 1 we have Dr. Kenan Bouzida, a medical student at Tufts University reviewing the rise and fall of Envision. In Part 2 Kenan is joined by Dr. Bob McNamara, a man who has dedicated much of his life to fighting the corporate practice of medicine.   Click HERE for our detailed shownotes! (https://simkit.co/podcast/)