Need for standardized sign-out in the emergency department: a survey of emergency medicine residency and pediatric emergency medicine fellowship program directors.

Objectives: To determine the existing patterns of sign-out processes prevalent in emergency departments (EDs) nationwide. In addition, to assess whether training programs provide specific guidance to their trainees regarding sign-outs and attitudes of emergency medicine (EM) residency and pediatric EM fellowship program directors toward the need for the development of standardized guidelines relating to sign-outs.

Methods: A Web-based survey of training program directors of each Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited EM residency and pediatric EM fellowship program was conducted in March 2006.

Accidental foot burns in children from contact with naturally heated surfaces during summer months: experience from a regional burn center.

Background: Foot burns in children often result from contact with heated surfaces due to high ambient temperatures during summer in the southwestern United States. The objective of this study was to describe the unique cause and clinical characteristics of this type of injury.

Methods: A retrospective review of medical records of pediatric patients presenting with contact burns of the foot in Arizona Burn Center, which is the third largest burn center in the United States.