Ultrasound to reduce cognitive errors in the ED

Abstract Emergency medicine setting is intrinsically prone to a greater risk of medical errors than other specialties. Cognitive errors are particularly frequent when the clinical decision-making process heavily relies on heuristics. These could be defined as “mental shortcuts,” which enable physici...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American journal of emergency medicine 2012-11, Vol.30 (9), p.2030-2033
Main Authors: Elia, Fabrizio, MD, Panero, Francesco, MD, Molino, Paola, MD, Ferrari, Giovanni, MD, Aprà, Franco, MD
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Anesthesia. Intensive care medicine. Transfusions. Cell therapy and gene therapy
Biological and medical sciences
Blood pressure
Cardiac arrhythmia
Clinical decision making
Cognition & reasoning
Dyspnea
Edema
Electrocardiography
Emergency
Emergency medical care
Emergency Service, Hospital
Failure
Female
Hemodynamics
Heuristic
Humans
Hypertension
Intensive care medicine
Investigative techniques, diagnostic techniques (general aspects)
Male
Medical errors
Medical Errors - prevention & control
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Oliguria
Oxygen saturation
Pericardial Effusion - diagnostic imaging
Physicians
Pleural effusion
Pulmonary Atelectasis - diagnostic imaging
Pulmonary Embolism - diagnostic imaging
Pulmonary embolisms
Sepsis
Streptococcus infections
Tomography
Ultrasonic investigative techniques
Ultrasonography
Urinary system
Urinary tract diseases
Urinary tract infections
Urogenital system
Vena Cava, Inferior - diagnostic imaging
X-rays
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Description
Summary:Abstract Emergency medicine setting is intrinsically prone to a greater risk of medical errors than other specialties. Cognitive errors are particularly frequent when the clinical decision-making process heavily relies on heuristics. These could be defined as “mental shortcuts,” which enable physicians to rapidly overcome both time and efforts required by the normative reasoning. Our article demonstrates how emergency physicians' thinking may be affected by failed heuristics, through the description of 3 real clinical cases. We aimed to show how the proper use of a widespread and easy-learning technology, such as goal-directed, focused ultrasonography, may both counteract cognitive errors and favor the right interpretation of other examinations.
ISSN:0735-6757
1532-8171
DOI:10.1016/j.ajem.2012.04.008