Disaster day: a simulation-based competition for educating emergency medicine residents and medical students on disaster medicine.

Background: Disaster medicine is a growing field within the specialty of emergency medicine, but educational training typically focuses on hospital drills or other educational strategies, such as didactics, simulation, or tabletop exercises. With the success of gamification in other medical education applications, we sought to investigate if a novel gamified curricular innovation would lead to improved test performance and confidence in the ability to manage a real mass casualty incident (MCI).

Methods: This was a prospective observational study of medical students and emergency medicine residents who participated in a 4-h simulation-based competition consisting of 4 unique stations.

Aortic Dissection as the Culprit for Seizure.

The authors present a case of syncope that was caused by aortic dissection. As the main artery to the system circulation, aortic dissection can manifest in numerous ways. This case reminds the clinician of the high index of suspicion necessary to diagnose this potentially life-threatening problem.

Serotonin Syndrome in the Emergency Department.

With the widespread use of serotonergic agents including many antidepressants, antiemetics, illicit drugs, and even some herbal supplements, serotonin syndrome is a condition seen more frequently. It can appear abruptly and, if untreated, can progress to a life-threatening state. Prompt recognition and treatment is imperative to avoid complications.