A Standard Operating Procedure to Aid the Prehospital Management of Pediatric Cardiac Arrest Resulting From Submersion

Title: A Standard Operating Procedure to Aid the Prehospital Management of Pediatric Cardiac Arrest Resulting From Submersion
Authors: Best R, Harris B, Walsh J, Manfield T
Journal: Pediatric Emergency Care, May 2017

This is a simple, straight-forward article focused on developing a "Standard Operating Procedure" (SOP) for the resuscitation of a pediatric drowning patient. The authors do a stellar job of sticking with the evidence and focusing on the goal of reversing systemic hypoxemia. Included in the article is a a treatment pathway that can be easily adopted in to pre-hospital and emergency department treatment protocols.

The main points of the SOP include:

• Utilizing a "pit-crew" approach top the resuscitation with pre-defined roles and prioritied
• An organized approached based primarily on the respiratory status
• Exclude unnecessary treatments like abdominal thrusts that take focus away from reversing hypoxemia

Reference

Best RR, Harris BHL, Walsh JL, Manfield T. Pediatric Drowning: A Standard
Operating Procedure to Aid the Prehospital Management of Pediatric Cardiac Arrest Resulting From Submersion. Pediatr Emerg Care. 2017 May 8.