Finding a Mentor

Author: Nick Pettit, Ph.D. OMS II
Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine

“Don’t go into that field of medicine, I know fifty burned out doc’s in that field.” While on one of my first clinical experiences I found it discouraging when I expressed an
interest in emergency medicine (EM) and the attending I was working with immediately
rejected my idea of going into this field with a negative opinion. Unfortunately, such
negative connotations frequently arise when mentioning EM, especially with non-EM
faculty.[1] As such, due to the brevity of medical school, it is imperative as medical
students to not only find a good mentor but to find one as early on as possible.

Drug Seeking Behavior: Identifying and Managing Patients

Author: Wendy Perdomo, MS-4
Universidad Iberoamericana (UNIBE)

The most common reason patients visit the emergency department (ED) is due to pain of which represents 75% of complaints in the ED, and the third most common health care
problem.[1] Of these visits to the ED, about 20% of these patients are categorized as “drug-seeking,” which is defined as

Rules of the Road: Ch 16 Summary: "Planning Ahead for Success in Your Third and Fourth Years"

Originally Published: AAEM's Rules of the Road for Medical Students, First Ed. Chief Editors: A. Antoine Kazzi, MD FAAEM MAAEM; Joel M. Schofer, MD RDMS FAAEM
Chapter Summary by: Adrian Tripp, MSIII

Thinking about which specialty to select can bring about feelings of uncertainty and uneasiness in every medical student. It is an important decision that should be made with an open mind, honest self-evaluation, and after thorough investigation. Fortunately, if you have already decided on emergency medicine (EM), or have at least narrowed down your list of possibilities to include EM, AAEM's Rules of the Road for Medical Students can help you prepare for a successful match.

Planning a Student Symposium

Author: Bill Burns
Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University 

The following details the experience of the 2012 AAEM Midwest Medical Student Symposium

planning team. The 2012 event was the 6th Midwest Symposium held at Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine and we owe a debt to all those student leaders who preceded us and whose great work, in developing strong relationships with the

Clinical Exam for Shoulder Injuries: Which are worth the time?

Author: Andrew W Phillips, MD Med

Stanford/Kaiser Emergency Medicine Residency Program

Shoulder injuries are not uncommon in the emergency department (ED), and although shoulder soft tissue injuries are typically non-emergent, the patient can be helped greatly knowing if s/he likely has a serious shoulder injury. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), however, is costly and not usually indicated in the ED setting, so the clinician is left with the physical exam. With over 70 different shoulder exams (1), which ones provide enough positive and negative likelihood ratios (LR) to be helpful?  (This free access article explains LR well: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1495095/(2). Look for a +LR>1.5 and a –LR<0.5 the minimum for clinical significance.)

If you have the time, Luime (3) and Hegedus (4) created what appear to be the definitive reviews to date, and a new, well-powered prospective study is on its way, based on a