• Education

After a 2-week reprise in the UK for a wedding, I am travelling back to the ‘Shakey Isles’. Two weeks of sleep, uninterrupted by aftershocks in a house with continual power, water and sewage facilities have allowed me to reflect on the past 3 months living in a state of National Emergency.

At 12:51 on 22 February 2011, a 6.3-magnitude earthquake shook Christchurch, sending masonry and buildings falling, rocks avalanching and clouds of dust pluming into the air. It was described as New Zealand's darkest day.1

It was only a matter of minutes before casualties arrived. Working at a smaller hospital in Christchurch specialising in rehabilitation, we were not equipped with the luxuries of an emergency department (ED). Instead, a physiotherapy gymnasium turned into a triage centre and a series of tables became a basic pharmacy and supply of equipment for procedures such as lines and catheters.

I assessed and managed a variety of patients ranging from simple lacerations and head injuries to fractured neck of femurs and one patient with multiple spinal fractures, a lacerated spleen and a ruptured diaphragm. I learnt that a bit of ‘Blue Peter’ style improvisation can turn a cardboard box into an adequate splint and, combined with a bit of faith, a grey cannula can become a reasonable femoral line for volume resuscitation.

It was during the earthquake that I realised how much I had learnt during my F2 year spent working in a busy ED in the East Midlands, not only in caring for patients in the department but also in coordinating and working in a team. It is a shame that many junior doctors will no longer have the same opportunity to work in EDs due to the structure of specialty training. However, for those who do undertake a rotation in ED, I cannot stress enough the importance in using that time to learn skills in assessing and managing trauma patients in a pressured environment, and for those who work in ED for you to pass your valuable skills on to your juniors.