Association of ambulance diversion policy on EMS transport and ambulance patient offload times: A comparison of three strategies.

Objectives: Despite limited supporting data, hospitals continue to apply ambulance diversion (AD). Thus, we examined the impact of three different diversion policies on diversion hours, transport time (TT; leaving scene to arrival at the hospital), and ambulance patient offload time (APOT; arrival at the hospital to patient turnover to hospital staff) for 9-1-1 transports in a 22-hospital county Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system.Methods: This retrospective study evaluated metrics during periods of three AD policies, each 27 days long: hospital-initiated (Period 1), complete suspension (Period 2), and County EMS-initiated (Period 3). We described the median transports and diversion hours, and compared the daily average and daily 90th percentile TT and APOT during the three study periods.Results: Over the study period, there were 50,992 total transports in the county; Period 3 had fewer median transports per day than Period 1 (581 vs 623, p < 0.001), while Period 2 was similar to Period 1 (606 vs 623, p = 0.108). Median average daily diversion hours decreased from 98.1 hours during Period 1 to zero hours during both Periods 2 (p < 0.001) and 3 (p < 0.001). Median daily average TT decreased from 18.3 minutes in Period 1 to 16.9 minutes in both Periods 2 (p < 0.001) and 3 (p < 0.001). Median daily 90th percentile TT showed a similar decrease from 30.2 minutes in Period 1 to 27.5 in Period 2 (p < 0.001), and to 28.1 in Period 3 (p = 0.001). Median average daily APOT was 26.0 minutes during Period 1, similar at 25.2 minutes during Period 2 (p = 826) and decreased to 20.4 minutes during Period 3 (p < 0.001). The median daily 90th percentile APOT was 53.9 minutes during Period 1, similar at 51.7 minutes during Period 2 (p = 0.553) and decreased to 40.3 minutes during Period 3 (p < 0.001).Conclusions: Compared to hospital-initiated AD, enacting no AD or County EMS-initiated AD was associated with less diversion time; TT and APOT showed statistically significant improvement without hospital-initiated AD but were of unclear clinical significance. EMS-initiated AD was difficult to interpret as that period had significantly fewer transports. EMS systems should consider these findings when developing strategies to improve TT, APOT, and system use of diversion.

Monkeypox 2022 Identify-Isolate-Inform: A 3I Tool for frontline clinicians for a zoonosis with escalating human community transmission.

Monkeypox 2022, a zoonotic virus similar to smallpox, presented as a rapidly escalating human outbreak with community transmission outside endemic regions of Africa. In just over one month of detection, confirmed cases escalated to over 3300, with reports of patients in at least 43 non-African nations. Mechanisms of transmission in animals and the reservoir host remain uncertain; spread from humans to wild or domestic animals risks the creation of new endemic zones. While initial cases were reported in men who have sex with men (MSM), monkeypox is not considered a sexually transmitted infection. Anyone with close contact with an infected person, aerosolized infectious material (e.g., from shaken bedsheets), or contact with fomites or infected animals is at risk. In humans, monkeypox typically presents with a non-specific prodromal phase followed by a classic rash with an incubation period of 5-21 days (usually 6-13 days). The prodrome may be subclinical, and the monkeypox virus may be transmissible from person-to-person before observed symptom onset. Most clinicians are unfamiliar with monkeypox. Information is rapidly evolving, producing an urgent need for immediate access to clear, concise, fact-based, and actionable information for frontline healthcare workers in prehospital, emergency departments/hospitals, and acute care/sexual transmitted infection clinics. This paper provides a novel Identify-Isolate-Inform (3I) Tool for the early detection and management of patients under investigation for monkeypox 2022. Patients are identified as potentially exposed or infected after an initial assessment of risk factors and signs/symptoms. Management of exposed patients includes consideration of quarantine and post-exposure prophylaxis with a smallpox vaccine. For infectious patients, providers must immediately don personal protective equipment and isolate patients. Healthcare workers must report suspected and confirmed cases in humans or animals to public health authorities. This innovative 3I Tool will assist emergency, primary care, and prehospital clinicians in effectively managing persons with suspected or confirmed monkeypox.

Monkeypox 2022: A Primer and Identify-Isolate-Inform (3I) Tool for Emergency Medical Services Professionals.

Monkeypox 2022 exhibits unprecedented human-to-human transmission and presents with different clinical features than those observed in prior outbreaks. Previously endemic only to West and Central Africa, the monkeypox virus spread rapidly world-wide following confirmation of a case in the United Kingdom on May 7, 2022 of an individual that had traveled to Nigeria. Detection of cases with no travel history confirms on-going community spread. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) professionals will likely encounter patients suspected or confirmed to have monkeypox, previously a rare disease and therefore unfamiliar to most clinicians. Consequently, it is critical for EMS medical directors to immediately implement policies and procedures for EMS teams - including emergency medical dispatchers - to identify potential monkeypox cases. These must include direction on actions EMS professionals should take to protect themselves and others from virus transmission. Monkeypox 2022 may manifest more subtly than it has historically. Presentations include a subclinical prodrome and less dramatic skin lesions - potentially limited to genital or anal body regions - which can be easily confused with dermatologic manifestations of common sexually transmitted infections (STIs). While most readily spread by close contact with infectious skin lesions on a patient, it is also transmissible from fomites, such as bed sheets. Additionally, droplet transmission can occur, and the virus can be spread by aerosolization under certain conditions. The long incubation period could have profound negative consequences on EMS staffing if clinicians are exposed to monkeypox. This report summarizes crucial information needed for EMS professionals to understand and manage the monkeypox 2022 outbreak. It presents an innovative Identify-Isolate-Inform (3I) Tool for use by EMS policymakers, educators, and clinicians on the frontlines who may encounter monkeypox patients. Patients are identified as potentially exposed or infected after an initial assessment of risk factors with associated signs and symptoms. Prehospital workers must immediately don personal protective equipment (PPE) and isolate infectious patients. Also, EMS professionals must report exposures to their agency infection control officer and alert health authorities for non-transported patients. Prehospital professionals play a crucial role in emerging and re-emerging infectious disease mitigation. The monkeypox 2022 3I Tool includes knowledge essential for all clinicians, plus specific information to guide critical actions in the prehospital environment.

Emergency Ambulance Utilization in Harlem, New York (July 1985).

Emergency ambulance service in Harlem, New York was studied to determine the degree to which misuse exists. Data were collected prospectively from a paramedic (ALS) ambulance and a basic life support (BLS) ambulance dispatched from Harlem Hospital. The results show that only 29.5% of the 136 calls dispatched to the ALS unit had congruent dispatch and actual priorities (r = 0.05), and only 59.6% of the 255 calls handled by both units were recommended for the unit with the proper level of the skill. 69.9% of calls assigned to the ALS unit were found not to need emergency transport (ET), the most common reason being the "unfounded" call, which represented 35.3% of the sample. ALS intervention was needed on only 20.6% of calls dispatched to the ALS unit. Paramedics were able to correctly access the need for ET 95.6% of the time, but were only willing to refuse transport 35.2% of times in which they felt it was unnecessary. Within the population studied, there exists a significant subset of nonemergency calls which could be more efficiently triaged, both at the level of dispatch and by EMS personnel on the scene. Author Perspective: This research was performed from July 1 to July 26, 1985 to fulfill the requirements of a Community Medicine rotation when the investigator was a student at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City (presently the Ican School of Medicine at Mount Sinai). Dr. Alexander E. Kuehl was the Vice President of New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, Emergency Medical Service at the time (prior to New York City EMS moving under the Fire Department) and served as preceptor for the project. This work has not been previously published; however, the investigator was an invited presenter at the "Third International Urban Emergency Medical Service System Symposium" in September 1985 at the World Trade Center in New York City. The oral presentations at the symposium were entitled: "Paramedic Attitudes Concerning On-The-Scene Triage" and "Emergency Ambulance Utilization in Harlem." To complete the work for this 30-day rotation, the investigator performed daily ambulance ride-alongs in Harlem, New York for 15 consecutive days and collected data prospectively from paramedics. EMTs staffing an ambulance during the same time frame provided concurrent information by survey. Some EMS terminology is now outdated; however, the terms have not been updated in order to preserve the historical perspective of the article. While the data are now historical, having been collected nearly 40 years ago, this research provides useful insights into current EMS initiatives, notably: (1) accuracy of assigned dispatch priority, (2) need for emergency transport to an emergency department, and (3) willingness of paramedics to refuse transport in cases where it is deemed unnecessary. The research questions represent many of the challenges that persist in today's EMS world with some being particularly relevant with the advent of Community Paramedicine. Emergency Ambulance Utilization in Harlem truly illustrates "what's old is new again!"

Optimizing Scarce Resource Allocation During COVID-19: Rapid Creation of a Regional Health-Care Coalition and Triage Teams in San Diego County, California.

Successful management of an event where health-care needs exceed regional health-care capacity requires coordinated strategies for scarce resource allocation. Publications for rapid development, training, and coordination of regional hospital triage teams to manage the allocation of scarce resources during coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are lacking. Over a period of 3 weeks, over 100 clinicians, ethicists, leaders, and public health authorities convened virtually to achieve consensus on how best to save the most lives possible and share resources. This is referred to as population-based crisis management. The rapid regionalization of 22 acute care hospitals across 4500 square miles in the midst of a pandemic with a shifting regulatory landscape was challenging, but overcome by mutual trust, transparency, and confidence in the public health authority. Because many cities are facing COVID-19 surges, we share a process for successful rapid formation of health-care care coalitions, Crisis Standard of Care, and training of Triage Teams. Incorporation of continuous process improvement and methods for communication is essential for successful implementation. Use of our regional health-care coalition communications, incident command system, and the crisis care committee helped mitigate crisis care in the San Diego and Imperial County region as COVID-19 cases surged and scarce resource collaborative decisions were required.

Taiwan's Successful COVID-19 Mitigation and Containment Strategy: Achieving Quasi Population Immunity.

The authors describe Taiwan's successful strategy in achieving control of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) without economic shutdown, despite the prediction that millions of infections would be imported from travelers returning from Chinese New Year celebrations in Mainland China in early 2020. As of September 2, 2020, Taiwan reports 489 cases, 7 deaths, and no locally acquired COVID-19 cases for the last 135 days (greater than 4 months) in its population of over 23.8 million people. Taiwan created quasi population immunity through the application of established public health principles. These non-pharmaceutical interventions, including public masking and social distancing, coupled with early and aggressive identification, isolation, and contact tracing to inhibit local transmission, represent a model for optimal public health management of COVID-19 and future emerging infectious diseases.

Opioid-Prescribing Trends in San Diego County, 2008-2019.

CONTEXT: In 2019, drug overdoses accounted for 70 630 deaths in the United States, 70.6% of which involved an opioid. Approximately 28% of these deaths involved prescription medications, representing a significant number nationally. Local, state, and national efforts continue to address the impact of prescription medications within the ongoing opioid epidemic. OBJECTIVE: This study examines trends in opioid prescription patterns from 2008 to 2019 in San Diego County, California, a major metropolitan area and the fifth most populous county in the United States. A timeline of events highlighting local, state, and national milestones is included to better contextualize distinct trends. DESIGN: Collection and analysis of annual Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) data for San Diego County. SETTING: San Diego County, California. PARTICIPANTS: Prescribing physicians using the Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES 2.0), California's PDMP. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Prescribing data for all opioids were aggregated by formulation and strength and then converted into morphine milligram equivalents (MME) per person using CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) conversion guidelines and local population estimates. Additional outcomes analyzed include the number of prescriptions dispensed, number of pills per prescription, pill strength, and specific drug. RESULTS: Total opioids prescribed increased by 29.7% from 2008 (399 MME per person) to 2012 (517 MME per person) and subsequently decreased by 54.4% from 2012 to 2019 (235 MME per person). The annual decrease in total MME from 2012 to 2019 averaged 5.9%. However, the 2-year decrease in MME from 2017 to 2019 was 35.1%, indicating an accelerated reduction in recent years. CONCLUSIONS: Opioid-prescribing trends in San Diego County from 2008 to 2019 are defined by 2 distinct periods. These trends may serve as an example of how local, state, and national efforts focusing on prescriber outreach, patient education, and regulatory oversight can address the impact of prescription opioids on the ongoing opioid epidemic.

The Southern California Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Consortium During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic.

In March 2020, at the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in the United States, the Southern California Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Consortium was formed. The consortium included physicians and coordinators from the 4 ECMO centers in San Diego County. Guidelines were created to ensure that ECMO was delivered equitably and in a resource effective manner across the county during the pandemic. A biomedical ethicist reviewed the guidelines to ensure ECMO use would provide maximal community benefit of this limited resource. The San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency further incorporated the guidelines into its plans for the allocation of scarce resources. The consortium held weekly video conferences to review countywide ECMO capacity (including census and staffing), share data, and discuss clinical practices and difficult cases. Equipment exchanges between ECMO centers maximized regional capacity. From March 1 to November 30, 2020, consortium participants placed 97 patients on ECMO. No eligible patients were denied ECMO due to lack of resources or capacity. The Southern California ECMO Consortium may serve as a model for other communities seeking to optimize ECMO resources during the current COVID-19 or future pandemics.

Emergency Department Management of the Sexual Assault Victim in the COVID Era: A Model SAFET-I Guideline From San Diego County.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has contributed to an increase in intimate partner violence (IPV), posing challenges to health care providers who must protect themselves and others during sexual assault examinations. Victims of sexual assault encountered in prehospital and emergency department (ED) settings have legal as well as medical needs. A series of procedures must be carefully followed to facilitate forensic evidence collection and law enforcement investigation. A literature review detected a paucity of published guidance on the management of sexual assault patients in the ED, and no information specific to COVID-19. OBJECTIVE: Investigators sought to update the San Diego County sexual assault guidelines, created in collaboration with health care professionals, forensic specialists, and law enforcement, through a consensus iterative review process. An additional objective was to create a SAFET-I Tool for use by frontline providers during the COVID-19 pandemic. DISCUSSION: The authors present a novel SAFET-I Tool that outlines the following five components of effective sexual assault patient care: stabilization, alert system activation, forensic evidence consideration, expedited post-assault treatment, and trauma-informed care. This framework can be used as an educational tool and template for agencies interested in developing or adapting existing sexual assault policies. CONCLUSIONS: There is a lack of clinical guidance for ED providers that integrates the many aspects of sexual assault patient care, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. A SAFET-I Tool is presented to assist emergency health care providers in the treatment and advocacy of sexual assault patients during a period with increasing rates of IPV.

Adult Patients with Respiratory Distress: Current Evidence-based Recommendations for Prehospital Care.

INTRODUCTION: We developed evidence-based recommendations for prehospital evaluation and treatment of adult patients with respiratory distress. These recommendations are compared with current protocols used by the 33 local emergency medical services agencies (LEMSA) in California. METHODS: We performed a review of the evidence in the prehospital treatment of adult patients with respiratory distress. The quality of evidence was rated and used to form guidelines. We then compared the respiratory distress protocols of each of the 33 LEMSAs for consistency with these recommendations. RESULTS: PICO (population/problem, intervention, control group, outcome) questions investigated were treatment with oxygen, albuterol, ipratropium, steroids, nitroglycerin, furosemide, and non-invasive ventilation. Literature review revealed that oxygen titration to no more than 94-96% for most acutely ill medical patients and to 88-92% in patients with acute chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation is associated with decreased mortality. In patients with bronchospastic disease, the data shows improved symptoms and peak flow rates after the administration of albuterol. There is limited data regarding prehospital use of ipratropium, and the benefit is less clear. The literature supports the use of systemic steroids in those with asthma and COPD to improve symptoms and decrease hospital admissions. There is weak evidence to support the use of nitrates in critically ill, hypertensive patients with acute pulmonary edema (APE) and moderate evidence that furosemide may be harmful if administered prehospital to patients with suspected APE. Non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) is shown in the literature to be safe and effective in the treatment of respiratory distress due to acute pulmonary edema, bronchospasm, and other conditions. It decreases both mortality and the need for intubation. Albuterol, nitroglycerin, and NIPPV were found in the protocols of every LEMSA. Ipratropium, furosemide, and oxygen titration were found in a proportion of the protocols, and steroids were not prescribed in any LEMSA protocol. CONCLUSION: Prehospital treatment of adult patients with respiratory distress varies widely across California. We present evidence-based recommendations for the prehospital treatment of undifferentiated adult patients with respiratory distress that will assist with standardizing management and may be useful for EMS medical directors when creating and revising protocols.

A Positive-Pressure Environment Disposable Shield (PEDS) for COVID-19 Health Care Worker Protection.

The COVID-19 pandemic has strained health care system resources and reduced the availability of life-sustaining and medical-grade personal protective equipment (PPE) though the combination of increased demand and disrupted manufacturing supply chains. As a result of these shortages, many health care providers have temporarily used largely untested, improvised PPE (iPPE). Lack of quality control for makeshift PPE and frequent repurposing of used items to conserve supplies increase both the risk of provider infection and nosocomial spread to uninfected patients. One strategy to reduce risk of infection and preserve existing equipment is the implementation of secondary barrier devices placed directly over patients or providers. The authors describe an inexpensive, disposable, positive-pressure head isolation unit that can be rapidly constructed from materials readily available in nearly all health care settings for under five US dollars. The unit was successfully deployed in Taiwan during the 2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak, and again during the COVID-19 pandemic. The iPPE worn directly by the health care workers (HCWs) can be donned prior to patient contact in the presence of an air source. This strategy may be more protective than a covering placed over the patient in an aerosol-generating environment, which requires the HCW to be in close contact with the patient prior to securing the protective device.

Comparing Training Techniques in Personal Protective Equipment Use.

INTRODUCTION: Physicians' management of hazardous material (HAZMAT) incidents requires personal protective equipment (PPE) utilization to ensure the safety of victims, facilities, and providers; therefore, providing effective and accessible training in its use is crucial. While an emphasis has been placed on the importance of PPE, there is debate about the most effective training methods. Circumstances may not allow for a traditional in-person demonstration; an accessible video training may provide a useful alternative. HYPOTHESIS: Video training of Emergency Medicine (EM) residents in the donning and doffing of Level C PPE is more effective than in-person training. NULL HYPOTHESIS: Video training of EM residents in the donning and doffing of Level C PPE is equally effective compared with in-person training. METHODS: A randomized, controlled pilot trial was performed with 20 EM residents as part of their annual Emergency Preparedness training. Residents were divided into four groups, with Group 1 and Group 2 viewing a demonstration video developed by the Emergency Preparedness Team (EPT) and Group 3 and Group 4 receiving the standard in-person demonstration training by an EPT member. The groups then separately performed a donning and doffing simulation while blinded evaluators assessed critical tasks utilizing a prepared evaluation tool. At the drill's conclusion, all participants also completed a self-evaluation survey about their subjective interpretations of their respective trainings. RESULTS: Both video and in-person training modalities showed significant overall improvement in participants' confidence in doffing and donning PPE equipment (P <.05). However, no statistically significant difference was found in the number of failed critical tasks in donning or doffing between the training modalities (P >.05). Based on these results, the null hypothesis cannot be rejected. However, these results were limited by the small sample size and the study was not sufficiently powered to show a difference between training modalities. CONCLUSION: In this pilot study, video and in-person training were equally effective in training for donning and doffing Level C PPE, with similar error rates in both modalities. Further research into this subject with an appropriately powered study is warranted to determine whether this equivalence persists using a larger sample size.

2019-nCoV: The Identify-Isolate-Inform (3I) Tool Applied to a Novel Emerging Coronavirus.

2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is an emerging infectious disease closely related to MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV that was first reported in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China in December 2019. As of January 2020, cases of 2019-nCoV are continuing to be reported in other Eastern Asian countries as well as in the United States, Europe, Australia, and numerous other countries. An unusually high volume of domestic and international travel corresponding to the beginning of the 2020 Chinese New Year complicated initial identification and containment of infected persons. Due to the rapidly rising number of cases and reported deaths, all countries should be considered at risk of imported 2019-nCoV. Therefore, it is essential for prehospital, clinic, and emergency department personnel to be able to rapidly assess 2019-nCoV risk and take immediate actions if indicated. The Identify-Isolate-Inform (3I) Tool, originally conceived for the initial detection and management of Ebola virus and later adjusted for other infectious agents, can be adapted for any emerging infectious disease. This paper reports a modification of the 3I Tool for use in the initial detection and management of patients under investigation for 2019-nCoV. After initial assessment for symptoms and epidemiological risk factors, including travel to affected areas and exposure to confirmed 2019-nCoV patients within 14 days, patients are classified in a risk-stratified system. Upon confirmation of a suspected 2019-nCoV case, affected persons must immediately be placed in airborne infection isolation and the appropriate public health agencies notified. This modified 3I Tool will assist emergency and primary care clinicians, as well as out-of-hospital providers, in effectively managing persons with suspected or confirmed 2019-nCoV.

Scabies: Application of the Novel Identify-Isolate-Inform Tool for Detection and Management.

Scabies is a highly contagious, globally prevalent, parasitic skin infestation caused by Sarcoptes scabiei var. hominis, also known as the itch mite. There have been outbreaks not only in the developing world, but also in the developed world among refugees and asylum seekers. Once infested with scabies mites, symptomatic patients, as well as asymptomatic carriers, quickly spread the disease through direct skin-to-skin contact. Typically, symptoms of scabies are characterized by an erythematous, papular, pruritic rash associated with burrows. Treatment of scabies involves using topical or systemic scabicides and treating secondary bacterial infections, if present. Given the prevalence and contagiousness of scabies, measures to prevent its spread are essential. Through application of the novel Identify-Isolate-Inform (3I) Tool, emergency medical providers can readily identify risk factors for exposure and important symptoms of the disease, thus limiting its spread through prompt scabicide therapy; isolate the patient until after treatment; and inform local public health authorities and hospital infection prevention, when appropriate. Ultimately, these three actions can aid public health in controlling the transmission of scabies cases, thus ensuring the protection of the general public from this highly contagious skin infestation.

Core Disaster Medicine Education (CDME) for Emergency Medicine Residents in the United States.

OBJECTIVES: Disaster Medicine (DM) education for Emergency Medicine (EM) residents is highly variable due to time constraints, competing priorities, and program expertise. The investigators' aim was to define and prioritize DM core competencies for EM residency programs through consensus opinion of experts and EM professional organization representatives. METHODS: Investigators utilized a modified Delphi methodology to generate a recommended, prioritized core curriculum of 40 DM educational topics for EM residencies. RESULTS: The DM topics recommended and outlined for inclusion in EM residency training included: patient triage in disasters, surge capacity, introduction to disaster nomenclature, blast injuries, hospital disaster mitigation, preparedness, planning and response, hospital response to chemical mass-casualty incident (MCI), decontamination indications and issues, trauma MCI, disaster exercises and training, biological agents, personal protective equipment, and hospital response to radiation MCI. CONCLUSIONS: This expert-consensus-driven, prioritized ranking of DM topics may serve as the core curriculum for US EM residency programs.

Pertussis: The Identify, Isolate, Inform Tool Applied to a Re-emerging Respiratory Illness.

Pertussis, commonly referred to as "whooping cough," is a highly contagious acute respiratory infection that has exhibited cyclical outbreaks throughout the last century. Although vaccines have provided some immunity, many populations, including infants and pregnant women, remain at risk for serious illness. Through the use of the novel "Identify, Isolate, Inform" (3I) tool, emergency department (ED) providers can readily recognize key symptoms of the disease and risk factors for exposure, thus curbing its transmission through early initiation of antimicrobial therapy and post-exposure prophylaxis. The three classic stages of pertussis include an initial catarrhal stage, characterized by nonspecific upper respiratory infection symptoms, which may advance to the paroxysmal stage, revealing the distinctive "whooping cough." This cough can persist for weeks to months leading into the convalescent stage. Household contacts of patients with suspected pertussis or other asymptomatic, high-risk populations (infants, pregnant women in their third trimester, and childcare workers) may benefit from post-exposure prophylactic therapy. The Pertussis 3I tool can also alert healthcare professionals to the proper respiratory droplet precautions during contact with a symptomatic patient, as well as isolation practices until antimicrobial treatment is in progress. ED personnel should then inform local public health departments of any suspected cases. All of these actions will ultimately aid public health in controlling the incidence of pertussis cases, thus ensuring the protection of the general public from this re-emerging respiratory illness.