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Please note that clinical judgement
supersedes all guidelines

Consent forms

  1. Go into the patient's room & log into the computer.
  2. Open the Consents tab in Epic.
  3. Search "blood" or "procedure" and complete the form. 
  4. Set "Relationship to "Self" if you are consenting the patient and not a proxy. 
  5. Discuss the procedure/blood consent with the patient as you normally would.
  6. Since you are the one at the computer (not the patient), ask the patient for consent to sign the form on their behalf. Then, click the button in front of them to sign on their behalf.
  7. If you are using a proxy (eg. patient's spouse), ask them to come to the computer to sign with the mouse.
  8. Sign for yourself and click done.

Chest Tubes

BEFORE PLACEMENT
 
TRAUMA PATIENTS
1.      Stable trauma – consult before
2.      Unstable trauma – trauma activation
 
MEDICAL PATIENTS
1.      Primary PTX (ex: young, tall person) – no consult
2.      Secondary PTX (ex: COPD) – no consult
3.      Recurrent primary PTX – consult
4.      Recurrent secondary PTX – no consult
 
In addition to the EPIC consult the involved ED attending should call the trauma attending about the case.
 
DURING PLACEMENT
 
TRAUMA PATIENTS
1.      EM will place the tube on odd days and Surgery will place the tube on even days.  Odd/even switch at 0700.
2.      When EM is on to place the chest tube surgery needs to be present during placement as they will be the ones managing the tube in-house.  This should be a Surgery Chief Resident, Trauma Fellow, or Surgery Attending in the room at the time. 
3.      The EM attending should be sterile and “at the elbow” of the resident placing the tube to ensure proper procedure is followed and the placement is good.
 
MEDICAL PATIENTS
1.       For medical chest tubes that will be admitted to surgery points 1-3 above still apply.
2.       For medical chest tubes that will be admitted to a non-surgical service EM will place the tube and the EM attending should still be sterile and “at the elbow” of the resident placing the tube. 

Dual sequential defibrillation

Procedural sedation

- Complete pre-procedure form prior to all sedations
- MD/DO must push medications (residents may push meds under direct supervision of attending)

US-guided nerve blocks

​Do NOT block:
    - Deep Plexus (ESP, PENG, supraclavicular) in anticoagulated patient (definition here)
    - Pelvic or thorax in pregnancy (see link above)

    - Any neurovascular deficit

    - Combo ulnar and radial shaft fracture

    - Humeral shaft or supracondylar fracture

    - Pilon ankle fracture

    - >2 foot fractures

    - Tibial plateau/shaft fracture

    - Crush injuries

​

Consult before block:

For any injury requiring a consult during the ED visit, discuss with consultant prior to performing block

    - Distal femur or shaft fracture

    - Ankle fracture or dislocation

    - Shoulder dislocation WITH fracture

 

Chloroprocaine ONLY (w/ consult)

    - Elbow dislocation

  • Distal radius fracture

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Denver Health Adult Emergency Department Application - DISCLAIMER – July 16, 2025

The Denver Health Adult Emergency Department Application ("Application") has been created for the Denver Health and Hospital Authority ("Denver Health") and is intended for informational purposes only. Although Denver Health attempts to keep this information as accurate as possible, Denver Health makes no guarantees or warranties of any kind, express or implied, with respect to the use of this Application.

This Application is not intended to be, nor should it be used as a substitute for, the professional medical advice or analysis required when evaluating and caring for a Denver Health patient or any patient outside of Denver Health. Use of this Application is not intended to, nor does it create, a physician-patient or healthcare provider-patient relationship between Denver Health and the user or the user's patient. Application users assume full responsibility for any actions taken on the basis of the information obtained from use of the Application and agree that Denver Health bears no responsibility for any claim, loss or damage caused by or related to its use.

Since Denver Health has no legal obligation to update the information provided on this Application, Denver Health cannot ensure that all information reflects the most up-to-date information regarding Emergency Medicine. Denver Health may make changes or improvements to this Application at any time without notice or announcement. Application users outside of Denver Health should consult their local facility policies and procedures regarding Emergency Department guidelines for their institutions and practice sites.

If you have any questions about this disclaimer or any other information contained in this Application, you can contact the Emergency Medicine Leadership team.

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