DISCUSSION
Every headache and fever could be an early meningitis, every vague abdominal pain an early appendicitis. So how do we handle innocuous-appearing cases with early, nonspecific symptoms of a very serious illness about to unfold?
We must start by following the Miyagi rule. In The Karate Kid, Mr. Miyagi advised that walking on the left or the right side of the road was safe, but walking in the middle would result, sooner or later, in “squish, just like grape.” Although he related this premise to karate, we can also apply it to medicine: See a patient or do not see a patient; but if you see a patient “so-so,” you will be squished—by the patient, by a plaintiff’s attorney, and/or by your state’s medical board.
A case such as this one strikes fear in the heart of anyone who has seen patients in an ambulatory setting. The initial presentation was modest: a toddler with vomiting and fever. We do not know what the other vital signs were, and we do not know whether the child appeared toxic. The lack of vital signs or recorded vital signs represent half-measures. The patient’s vitals could have been normal, and the NP’s actions could have been fully defensible. The problem is, we don’t know—and the clinician is on the hook.
All patients require vital signs. They must be done; they must be complete, and they must be recorded. At a minimum, temperature, blood pressure, respiratory rate, and (generally) O2 saturation are required. Some specialties may have other requirements (eg, fingerstick glucose for patients with diabetes, visual acuity testing for those with eye complaints). A full list of data you should be obtaining is practice specific and beyond the scope of this article; the point is, decide on the relevant set of vitals and intake data and be sure it is recorded at every visit.
Failure to obtain and record vital signs—as seen in this case—is sloppy practice, difficult to defend, and sets up an inference of negligence. Even when the care is perfect (and without bad outcome), if the medical board reviews the record for any reason, you will be sanctioned for “failure to keep adequate and accurate medical records” and your license burdened. Here, we are told the defendant NP “did not chart the child’s blood pressure, pulse, or respiratory rate.” I am willing to bet the NP was not responsible for charting the values in the normal course of practice, but see how responsibility is parked with the clinician? If intake staff do not record vital signs, politely (yet firmly) insist they do so.
Continue to: Furthermore, the disposition of many child visits...