This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Doctor 3

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

This doctor should be experienced in surgical techniques required in trauma resuscitation. His responsibilities are to:

  • perform practical procedures as indicated by other team members
  • identify and control life threatening bleeding

Doctor 3 partakes in the same sequence:

  • primary survey: as directed by other team members this doctor should perform cut-downs, cricothyroidotomies and chest drain insertions. This doctor should also perform a rectal examination and seek signs of pelvic injury, i.e. perineal bruising or blood in the urethral meatus. The patient should then be catheterised if this is not contra-indicated.

  • secondary survey: doctor 3 should examine the chest and abdomen to exclude occult bleeding. This may be difficult. Peritoneal lavage, ultrasound or CT scan may be necessary to confirm intra-abdominal haemorrhage, though these should not delay surgery if clear signs of bleeding are present.

Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation, such as a web address or phone number. This information will always be displayed when you visit this page