Resilience in rural health system.

Introduction: Current literature emphasises the importance of resilience in health care. Studies have shown that lack of resilience not only leads to adverse clinical outcomes but is also associated with burnout and long-term stress in clinicians. Resource-limited rural settings in the United States often impose unique stressors, and thus, it is critical to examine resilience of health care providers practicing rural medicine.

Impact of Treatment Modalities on Discharge Disposition in Blunt Splenic Injuries.

Background: Management of blunt splenic trauma has evolved over several decades, trending towards nonoperative management and splenic artery embolization. Extensive research has been conducted regarding the management of blunt splenic injuries, but there is little data on the association of treatment modality with discharge disposition.

Methods: This is an observational retrospective study conducted at a level-one trauma center with blunt splenic trauma patients of age ≥18 years between January 2010 and December 2021.

A 10-Year Epidemiologic Overview of Firearm Injuries in Southern West Virginia.

The firearm mortality rate in West Virginia (WV) increased over the past four years and is currently 50% higher than the national rate. These alarming statistics, combined with the urban-to-rural shift in firearm injuries, prompted this 10-year epidemiologic overview. To the best of the authors' knowledge, the current study stands alone as the only report of its kind on firearm injuries in the rural setting of southern WV.

Change in Medication-Associated Fall Risk Among Older Adults After Admission for Fall-Related Trauma.

Background: As the population ages, it is predicted that approximately 40% of all patients who experience fall-related trauma will be 65 years of age and older. Most injuries in older adults are caused by falls that are the result of multiple contributing factors including home hazards, comorbidities, frailty, and medications. A variety of medications have been associated with falls, specifically those with sedating and anticholinergic effects.

Trauma Bay Time Clocks: Influence on Emergency Department Length of Stay.

Background: To monitor the time elapsed since patient arrival in the emergency department, Trauma Services at the study institution installed a large digital stopwatch timer placed at the head of each trauma bay on June 5, 2017. This quality improvement endeavor became an essential component of performance evaluation.

Objective: The purpose of the study is to measure the impact of trauma bay time clocks on emergency department length of stay.