ACLS tips

[wonderbread12]

Newly trained on ACLS....What do you guys use to keep on top of all the algorithms? Does it solidify with clinical repetition or do you review guidelines as refreshers from time to time?

Thanks!

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[ResQRN144]

Just clinical time and repetition. It'll become clock work for you.

 

[Arcan57]

It's important to become fast and efficient at executing ineffective plans. You'll quickly learn that the point of most of ACLS isn't to save the patient (that's usually been decided well before they get to you) but to keep people from freaking the f"&$ out. Epi every 3 min is about the same as praying the rosary except it's acceptable to atheists and praying the rosary doesn't turn dead people into pegged and trached ICU rocks.

 

[Birdstrike]

most of ACLS isn't to save the patient (that's usually been decided well before they get to you) but to keep people from freaking the f"&$ out.

(In deep, very professional sounding TV commercial-guy voice, the official slogan of ACLS)-

"ACLS. Because although the results are the exactly the same, appearing to calmly follow any protocol looks a helluva lot better than putting the paddles up to your head and spinning around in place like a panicked freak. "

Lost and suppressed ACEP teaching footage of how codes were run pre-ACLS (doctor at 00:09, paddles replaced by phones due to early-EM era budget constraints):

 

[emergentmd]

Newly trained on ACLS....What do you guys use to keep on top of all the algorithms? Does it solidify with clinical repetition or do you review guidelines as refreshers from time to time?

Thanks!

You do not do this enough to remember every little tidbit. Good that its straight forward.

Meds+fluids vs shock.

 

[dchristismi]

Yes. All of the above.

You will get to the point where you can run codes in your sleep. You can run 2 codes at once (one on the phone upstairs and one in person.) You can run them in a box, You can run them with a Fox. (Ahem, Rusty...) You can run them here and there, and you can run them everywhere.

 

[deleted547339]

Yes. All of the above.

You will get to the point where you can run codes in your sleep. You can run 2 codes at once (one on the phone upstairs and one in person.) You can run them in a box, You can run them with a Fox. (Ahem, Rusty...) You can run them here and there, and you can run them everywhere.

But what if I don't like green eggs and ham?

 

[dchristismi]

You just have to like epi and voltage. All the rest is gravy.
It doesn't rhyme quite as well, though.

 

[Birdstrike]

Yes. All of the above.

You will get to the point where you can run codes in your sleep. You can run 2 codes at once (one on the phone upstairs and one in person.) You can run them in a box, You can run them with a Fox. (Ahem, Rusty...) You can run them here and there, and you can run them everywhere.

Dr Suess is that you?!

 

[wonderbread12]

thank you for the replies

Loving the EM personalities here lol

 

[Birdstrike]

Loving the EM personalities here lol

It's called "crazy." But yeah, people who go into EM tend to be pretty cool (and a little bit nuts).

 

[EM4life]

It will solidify but you have to also remember that pretty much everyone in the room is certified and knows acls, your ultimate job is to keep your head above the cloud and think of the next step, think of anything you can do uniquely as a physician like intubation, bedside ultrasound, ask for meds that are not in the algorithm like tpa and bicarbonate or calcium or plan how you will break this to the family etc

 

[Doctor Bob]

Newly trained on ACLS....What do you guys use to keep on top of all the algorithms? Does it solidify with clinical repetition or do you review guidelines as refreshers from time to time?

It doesn't matter. They all die anyways.

http://www.theonion.com/article/world-death-rate-holding-steady-at-100-percent-1670