A Dubbo team is helping health professionals in rural communities kick goals in emergency medicine.
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It has passed skills and knowledge to them at workshops focused on a range of emergency department case studies.
More than 100 people at the workshops discussed the treatment of patients who had presented at an emergency department because of the likes of a cardiac arrest, overdose, asthma or severe headache.
They welcomed feedback from Dubbo Hospital's director of medical services Dr Randall Greenberg and director of the Emergency Care Institute Dr Michael Golding, who are Fellows of the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine (FACEMs).
The two doctors worked with clinical nurse consultant Judy Townsend and project support Jody Towney in delivering the Emergency Medicine Education and Training (EMET) workshops at Wellington, Rylstone, Gulgong, Coolah, Coonabarabran, Baradine and Gilgandra in May.
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An initiative of the college, the EMET program receives federal funding. It provides education, training and supervision for people working in emergency departments or delivering emergency care services, who are not specifically trained in emergency medical care.
Of the more than 600 hospitals with emergency departments or emergency services in Australia, only 25 per cent are staffed by FACEMs. Hospitals without them typically are in the bush.
The workshops in the Western NSW Local Health District attracted GPs, visiting medical officers, medical students, registered nurses, health service managers, paramedics and health workers.
"All locations had an extremely impressive turnout, given that some of these facilities staff only two registered nurses," Dr Greenberg said.
"With very limited resources, they handle themselves extremely well in any given emergency situation."
Wellington Health Service manager Sally Loughnan, embraced sharing of "lessons learned".
"I would love these (workshops) every few months," she said. "They are so invaluable."