FLOW
CHART FOR MANAGEMENT OF DROWNING AND NEAR DROWNING IN CHILDREN IN ACCIDENT
AND EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT
Sugathan PS
RIPAS Hospital, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
Objective:
To develop a user-friendly flow chart which can be quickly referred by
medical personnel in Accident and Emergency departments (A&E) when
faced with a child victim of drowning and near drowning (submersion
injuries). Such a flow-chart was found to be wanting in quality and
availability.
Methods:
Literature search, correspondence with resuscitation councils and
individual experts in the field and personal discussions were used while
developing this flow-chart. After the draft was prepared it was presented
at many informal gatherings and shown to experts as well as intended users.
Comments and suggestions emerging out of this process were incorporated
wherever appropriate.
Results:
A flow-chart has been developed for management of submersion injuries.
Short explanatory notes are given. Short appendices on documentation and monitoring
are included.
Conclusion:
The author has encountered many scenarios of submersion injuries in the
hospital setting. While managing such victims, absence of clear and precise
protocols / flow-charts were felt to be a major handicap. The flow-chart
being presented will hopefully be useful in A&E departments in
hospitals wherever submersion injuries are encountered.