Airway management requires a lot things. It requires not only technical skills and specific considerations of anatomy and physiology but a coordinated team who can communicate clearly and react to a whole slew of potentially challenging situations. On this month’s Best Case Ever podcast we use the framework of a new mnemonic, the PREPARE mnemonic, to discuss human factors, situational awareness and some airway tips and tricks with intensivist Peter Brindley, human factors expert Chris Hicks and EM-intensivist Sara Gray…
Podcast Production, Sound Design & Editing by Anton Helman, April 2017
Prepare Mnemonic for Airway Management
Full PDF algorithm of PREPARE created by Dr. Caroline Shooner for posting on ED or ICU walls.
The Case of Elaine Bromiley explaining human factors, situational awareness and team communication in airway management gone wrong
Pearl: Routinely locate and mark the cricothyroid membrane by Laryngeal Handshake method prior to airway management
Watch Rich Levitan’s cricothyrotomy video HERE
General Airway poster for your ED by Dr. Caroline Shooner
Medications for Airway Management card PDF 2017
References
Brindley PG, Beed M, Law JA, et al. Airway management outside the operating room: how to better prepare. Can J Anaesth. 2017;64(5):530-539. Full PDF
Shaw J, Frerk C, Russell J. A commentary on human factors aspects of cases reported to NAP 4. In: Cook TM, Woodall N, Frerk C, eds. Fourth National Audit Project of the Royal College of Anaesthetists and Difficult Airway Society. Major Complications of Airway Management in the United Kingdom. Report and Findings, Chapter 24. London: Royal College of Anaesthetists, March 2011; 193–201.
Flin R, Fioratou E, Frerk C et al. Human factors in the development of complications of airway management: preliminary evaluation of an interview tool. Anaesthesia 2013; 68: 817–25.
Other FOAMed Resources on Human Factors in Airway Management
Rich Levitan tells his Best Case Ever on Airway Strategy & Mental Preparedness in EM Procedures
George Kovacs on Psychology and Human Factors in Airway Management lecture
Failure to plan for failure: A discussion of Airway Disasters on EMCrit
Cliff Reid from ResusMe on Difficult Airway – What Kind Exactly
Situational awareness in resuscitation with Mike Lauria on EMCrit
The Vortex Approach to airway management
Head up intubation on SanCrit.
Leave A Comment