- Email: [email protected]
Cardiology—a call for papers
Comment
the line of no difference (1·00–1·15, p=0·05). There were no excess deaths in emergency surgical admissions. This period has been investigated before. However, previous studies had been too limited in scope— looking at single hospitals’ experiences,5 or raw data on mortality not controlled for by admission numbers1—to show any association. This possibility of increased mortality should guide managers, doctors, and governments, all of whom should take appropriate preventive measures. Managers should carefully introduce new staff to their hospitals, senior doctors should take time to address their juniors’ inexperience, and governments should consider how to organise their medical recruitment. After all, patients might not know about the “killing season”, and even if they do, they do not have a choice when they are admitted to hospital in emergencies. Science Photo Library
Robert Nash North West London Hospitals NHS Trust, Northwick Park Hospital, London HA1 3UJ, UK [email protected] I wrote this Comment while on work experience at The Lancet.
8 years, Min Hua Jen and colleagues4 showed that there were more deaths during the first week of August than in the last week of July. The 6% overall increase in mortality that they found was due to an 8% rise in deaths in patients admitted with medical complaints. However, the 95% confidence intervals hovered onto
1 2 3 4 5
Aylin P, Majeed FA. The killing season—fact or fiction? BMJ 1994; 309: 1690. Shulkin DJ. The July phenomenon revisited: are hospital complications associated with new house staff? Am J Med Qual 1995; 10: 14–17. Barry WA, Rosenthal GE. The “July phenomenon” and the care of the severely injured patient: fact or fiction? Surgery 2001; 130: 346–53. Jen MH, Bottle A, Majeed A, Bell D, Aylin P. Early in-hospital mortality following trainee doctors’ first day at work. PLoS One 2009; 4: e7103. Borenstein SH, Choi M, Gerstle JT, Langer JC. Errors and adverse outcomes on a surgical service: what is the role of residents? J Surg Res 2004; 122: 162–66.
Cardiology—a call for papers
To submit a paper go to http:// ees.elsevier.com/thelancet
1314
The Lancet is dedicating a special issue to cardiology to coincide with the American College of Cardiology meeting to be held in Atlanta, GA, USA, on March 14–16, 2010. We will consider high-quality original research papers that describe the results of randomised trials and will influence clinical practice. If your work is being presented at the meeting and falls under an embargo policy, please tell us the date, time, and manner of presentation (poster or oral). If your
paper is accepted here, publication on our website can be scheduled to coincide with the presentation. The deadline for submissions is Jan 31, 2010, via our online submission system. Early submission is encouraged. Please state in your covering letter that the submission is in response to this call for papers. Stuart Spencer The Lancet, London NW1 7BY, UK
www.thelancet.com Vol 374 October 17, 2009
the line of no difference (1·00–1·15, p=0·05). There were no excess deaths in emergency surgical admissions. This period has been investigated before. However, previous studies had been too limited in scope— looking at single hospitals’ experiences,5 or raw data on mortality not controlled for by admission numbers1—to show any association. This possibility of increased mortality should guide managers, doctors, and governments, all of whom should take appropriate preventive measures. Managers should carefully introduce new staff to their hospitals, senior doctors should take time to address their juniors’ inexperience, and governments should consider how to organise their medical recruitment. After all, patients might not know about the “killing season”, and even if they do, they do not have a choice when they are admitted to hospital in emergencies. Science Photo Library
Robert Nash North West London Hospitals NHS Trust, Northwick Park Hospital, London HA1 3UJ, UK [email protected] I wrote this Comment while on work experience at The Lancet.
8 years, Min Hua Jen and colleagues4 showed that there were more deaths during the first week of August than in the last week of July. The 6% overall increase in mortality that they found was due to an 8% rise in deaths in patients admitted with medical complaints. However, the 95% confidence intervals hovered onto
1 2 3 4 5
Aylin P, Majeed FA. The killing season—fact or fiction? BMJ 1994; 309: 1690. Shulkin DJ. The July phenomenon revisited: are hospital complications associated with new house staff? Am J Med Qual 1995; 10: 14–17. Barry WA, Rosenthal GE. The “July phenomenon” and the care of the severely injured patient: fact or fiction? Surgery 2001; 130: 346–53. Jen MH, Bottle A, Majeed A, Bell D, Aylin P. Early in-hospital mortality following trainee doctors’ first day at work. PLoS One 2009; 4: e7103. Borenstein SH, Choi M, Gerstle JT, Langer JC. Errors and adverse outcomes on a surgical service: what is the role of residents? J Surg Res 2004; 122: 162–66.
Cardiology—a call for papers
To submit a paper go to http:// ees.elsevier.com/thelancet
1314
The Lancet is dedicating a special issue to cardiology to coincide with the American College of Cardiology meeting to be held in Atlanta, GA, USA, on March 14–16, 2010. We will consider high-quality original research papers that describe the results of randomised trials and will influence clinical practice. If your work is being presented at the meeting and falls under an embargo policy, please tell us the date, time, and manner of presentation (poster or oral). If your
paper is accepted here, publication on our website can be scheduled to coincide with the presentation. The deadline for submissions is Jan 31, 2010, via our online submission system. Early submission is encouraged. Please state in your covering letter that the submission is in response to this call for papers. Stuart Spencer The Lancet, London NW1 7BY, UK
www.thelancet.com Vol 374 October 17, 2009