Here’s a project to get excited about: IAFN just released the non-fatal strangulation documentation toolkit, available for free download (PDF). As noted in the preface, the toolkit “provides the forensic nurse with detailed guidance on assessment techniques, documentation, and evidence collection for this patient population. This toolkit also provides documents such as discharge instructions and sample policies that can be adjusted to best suit your institution and your forensic practice.” I encourage you to share widely, particularly with your ED physician and nursing colleagues (you’ll notice there is emergency medicine representation on the task force that developed this document).
We’ve been pretty hungry for guidance like this, so my hunch is this will be a popular post 🙂
{see also: Strangulation Position Paper, strangulation case review (fee)}