Pediatric emergencies in the office, hospital, and community: organizing systems of care.

Abstract

* Abbreviation: EMS-C = : emergency medical services for children The second edition of the “Blue Book” entitled Childhood Emergencies in the Office, Hospital, and Community: Organizing Systems of Care has been published by the Committee on Pediatric Emergency Medicine of the American Academy of Pediatrics.1 Although pediatric emergency medicine is now a recognized subspecialty, most children present for emergency care in physicians offices, clinics, and community emergency departments. All children should have access to high-quality emergency medical services. This book will help the pediatrician examine the state-of-the-art in pediatric emergency care nationally and will provide a resource to evaluate the services available in their own offices and communities. A seamless system of care from problem identification through out-of-hospital and hospital care and reintegration into the community can only be provided through advanced planning and preparation. This commentary will summarize the content of the 7 sections of the new “Blue Book” emphasizing new and expanded content. Because of page limitations, this commentary will present only a summary and readers are referred to the publication for more detail. The first section is devoted to individual preparation—the most basic component of emergency medical services for children (EMS-C). The many important roles of the primary care physician are defined and described. There is a new chapter on … Address correspondence to Jane F. Knapp, MD, Children's Mercy Hospital, 2401 Gillham Rd, Kansas City, MO 64108.