Do Clinical Decision Tools Reduce Bias? DFTB Collab

About this episode

This episode discusses the impact of clinical decision tools on bias in pediatric trauma imaging.

This episode of EM Pulse dives into a critical intersection of clinical practice: the overlap between objective evidence-based medicine and the subjective influence of implicit bias. In a special collaboration with Don’t Forget the Bubbles (DFTB) , we are joined by experts from across the globe to discuss a landmark study on how clinical decision rules—specifically the PECARN (Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network) imaging rules—impact disparities in pediatric trauma imaging. The Variables of Bias The team explores the concept of equitable care —providing the best possible outcome regardless of factors outside a patient’s control—and why awareness alone often isn’t enough to counteract the biases we all carry. Standardizing Equity: The Power of the Rule The core of this discussion centers on a prospective multicenter study titled “Perceived Race and Ethnicity on CT Use in Children with Minor Head or Abdominal Trauma.” The Question: Do racial and ethnic disparities in CT use still exist in the “PECARN era”? The Twist: Why the researchers chose to look at clinician-perceived race rather than self-identification to capture what is actually…

People in this episode

Host: UC Davis Department of Emergency Medicine

Topics covered

• clinical decision tools
• implicit bias
• pediatric trauma imaging
• equitable care
• racial disparities
• structured clinical rules

Keywords

• clinical decision tools
• implicit bias
• PECARN
• pediatric trauma
• equitable care
• racial disparities

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: PECARN, UCSF, Children’s National

Places: Greece

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