Devoted to the critical and contemporary topic of disasters and emergencies, the December 2009 issue of Nursing & Health Sciences has released a special issue entitled “Disasters and Emergencies: Preparing, Managing and Experiencing”. Published by Wiley-Blackwell, this collection of papers provides valuable insights from personal experiences and disaster reports as well as discussions of research findings aimed at improving the management of disasters and emergencies.

Fainting is the most common in-flight medical emergency. Research recently published in BioMed Central's open access journal Critical Care details the number, type and frequency of medical emergencies on board two airlines.

Authorities at Emerald in Queensland's central highlands are keeping a close watch on the flooded Nogoa River which is expected to peak this afternoon.

Queensland Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts flew into the central Queensland town of Emerald last night to be briefed on the latest flood situation.

New research suggests that at any given time, almost 10 percent of the emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and paramedics in the United States miss work because of injuries and illnesses they suffered on the job.

In the first survey to specifically measure hospital pediatric preparedness, a team of Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) researchers found few U.S. emergency rooms are properly equipped for children.

In the future, patients who arrive at a hospital Emergency Department complaining of chest pain may be diagnosed with a sophisticated CT scan. If the diagnosis is negative, the patient can go home—and the total time at the hospital will be much shorter than it is today.

Successful trials have recently been conducted at Lausanne, Switzerland, using the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) to guide a helicopter as it approached and touched down at an emergency medical service landing pad in the city.

According to the latest study on trampoline injuries by Rhode Island Hospital researchers, injuries have more than doubled in the past decade. An earlier Rhode Island Hospital study looking at data from 2001 and 2002 indicated an average of 75,000 children per year were seen in emergency departments across the country.