Drafting useful content for emergency medicine (EM) requires a structured approach that prioritizes immediate assessment and life-saving interventions. High-quality notes often mirror the systematic protocols used in real-time clinical practice 1. Systematic Patient Assessment (The ABCDE Approach) The cornerstone of emergency medicine is the ABCDE approach
While many resources are free, remember copyright law. Do not upload paid textbooks (e.g., Tintinalli’s or Rosen’s ) to public Google Drives. Most open-access EM PDFs fall under Creative Commons or educational use. Always attribute the source (e.g., "Adapted from LITFL 2024").
In the Emergency Department (ED), practitioners must stabilize patients with undifferentiated symptoms—ranging from chest pain to acute trauma. Traditional textbooks are often too dense for rapid review. High-quality PDF notes distill this information into: Rapid Algorithms
Short PDFs showing probe placement for FAST, RUSH, and Lung US (A-lines vs. B-lines) are invaluable.
: The most vital part of the note, capturing the physician's logic, differential diagnosis (DDx), and the ruling out of life-threatening conditions. Disposition and Follow-up
Many EM residents use Notion or Obsidian to write markdown notes, then export them as styled PDFs for their shift binders.
A significant portion of EM notes is dedicated to symptom-based presentations rather than just diseases. This mirrors the clinical reality where a patient presents with "chest pain," not "myocardial infarction." Good notes cover: