Reducing Unnecessary Instruments in Tonsil Hemorrhage Trays at a Canadian Tertiary Care Center: A Quality Improvement Project.

Background: In the emergency department (ED), there are pre-assembled tonsillar hemorrhage trays for management of post-tonsillectomy hemorrhage and peritonsillar abscess. After use, the tray is sent to the medical device reprocessing (MDR) department for decontamination, sterilization, and re-organization, all at a significant cost to the hospital and environment.

Objective: The goal of this project was to reduce unnecessary instruments on the tonsil hemorrhage tray by 30% by 1 year and report on the associated cost and carbon dioxide (CO) emissions savings.

An Exploration of the Interplay Between Well-being and Quality and Safety.

Purpose: Quality improvement and patient safety (QIPS) and clinician well-being work are interconnected and impact each other. Well-being is of increased importance in the current state of workforce shortages and high levels of burnout. The Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians (CAEP) Academic Symposium sought to understand the interplay between QIPS and clinician well-being and to provide practical recommendations to clinicians and institutions on ensuring that clinician well-being is integrated into QIPS efforts.

A Randomized Trial of Enteral Glutamine for Treatment of Burn Injuries.

Background: Glutamine is thought to have beneficial effects on the metabolic and stress response to severe injury. Clinical trials involving patients with burns and other critically ill patients have shown conflicting results regarding the benefits and risks of glutamine supplementation.

Methods: In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, we assigned patients with deep second- or third-degree burns (affecting ≥10% to ≥20% of total body-surface area, depending on age) within 72 hours after hospital admission to receive 0.