ACEP Partners with VisualDx to Enhance Measles Diagnosis and Treatment

ACEP and VisualDx are working together to deliver a comprehensive tool for physicians to address the measles outbreak, look-alike diagnoses, and all emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. Through this partnership, ACEP members will be provided with discounted access to VisualDX.

“We’re excited to support emergency physicians with a time-critical diagnostic information tool,” said Alison Haddock, MD, FACEP, president of ACEP. “This comes at a critical time and will help emergency physicians on the frontlines advance care delivery and protect public health by assisting in prompt, accurate diagnosis and helping slow the spread of this highly disease.”

Measles is one of the most contagious infectious diseases, and its delayed diagnosis can accelerate spread and worsen patient outcomes. At least a dozen states have reported more than 250 cases over the past few weeks. VisualDx’s clinical decision support software and medical image library can help clinicians quickly identify measles and its variant presentations across patient populations. This collaboration is geared toward reducing further spread.

“Emergency physicians save lives everyday – often while risking their own. It’s a privilege to support these unsung heroes as they confront yet another infectious disease challenge,” said Art Papier, MD, CEO of VisualDx. “In these difficult times, clinicians need rapid, reliable tools to support their decision-making in seconds. We are proud to contribute to that mission.”

With each license, ACEP members will also receive educational training on measles to enhance public health preparedness. Beyond measles, VisualDx is equipped to improve clinical decision-making on more than 3,000 diagnoses thanks to its 48,000 medical images. Through this project, ACEP hopes to improve readiness not only for measles but for any emerging infectious diseases.

Emergency Physicians Welcome Additional Hospital Reporting Measures on Boarding

Emergency physician-led changes to the 2025 Leapfrog Hospital Survey are in effect and will push hospitals toward more transparent and actionable reporting on the boarding crisis.

Three new measures seek:

• The percentage of ED patients that are admitted to the hospital that had a boarding time in the ED of more than four hours (where lower percentages are desirable)
• The median length of stay in the ED for patients admitted to the hospital (where lower values are desirable)
• The 90th percentile length of stay in the ED for patients admitted to the hospital (where lower values are desirable)

Based on ACEP’s comments, additional changes include:

• To recognize the systemic nature of this crisis, Leapfrog will rename the subsection “Hospital Boarding in the Emergency Department (ED)” instead of “ED Boarding.”
• Leapfrog will include patients admitted to observation status, as well as those admitted to the hospital’s inpatient setting.
• Hospitals will be asked to separate adults from pediatric patients, and those admitted to inpatient psychiatric beds from non-psychiatric beds. The goal of the latter is to inform whether there could be opportunities to improve the approach to patients with behavioral health emergencies.

For now, these measures are optional and not publicly reported for 2025.

But Leapfrog has indicated intent to publicly report in the future to “shine a light on the current crisis and its associated patient safety risks.”

ACEP, chapters and members are working at every level to tackle the boarding crisis. Together, we can enhance transparency, improve data sharing and move everyone closer to system-wide solutions that improve care and make it easier for you to save lives.

New AHRQ Report Highlights Emergency Physician Leadership on Boarding Solutions

ACEP is proud to lead the way on collaborative solutions necessary to address the nation’s boarding crisis, including the advocacy work that paved the way for the landmark AHRQ summit and newly published report.

The report captures many of emergency physicians’ biggest concerns and calls out ACEP-supported solutions to address boarding head-on, including enhancing measurement and standards, re-aligning hospital incentives, and increasing the support necessary to empower emergency physicians to do their jobs and save lives.

“The boarding crisis is straining our emergency departments and putting lives at risk,” said Alison Haddock, MD, FACEP, president of ACEP. “The only way to solve this crisis is through collaborative action. We are making progress and we are very eager to see government and health care leaders work together with us to move policies and initiatives from discussion to implementation.”

ACEP25 Salt Lake City & More

• Registration is open for ACEP25 in Salt Lake City, and “The Pitt” is making an appearance! ACEP just announced actor Noah Wyle, along with writer and producer Joe Sachs, MD, FACEP, and medical advisor Mel Herbert, MD, FACEP, for an exclusive panel discussion at ACEP25. Everything else you expect from the world’s largest EM conference is still on tap for September 7-10. The Section Hall Crawl is back. The ACEP25 Block Party just needs you to add some fun, and Olympic gold medalist Scott Hamilton will deliver the Opening Session keynote. Mr. Hamilton will share his inspiring journey of resilience – from childhood illness to cancer battles – offering a powerful message of perseverance, hope, and turning obstacles into opportunities during the Opening Session. A Wellness Hike will get you out in the fresh air, and two nights of mix-and-mingle activities by JamPack offer a great way to end a busy day of learning. Be sure to check out the popular pre-conference courses! Register with promo code ThePitt for a $100 discount.
• Recognizing the incredible toll that malpractice suits take on its membership, the ACEP Board and the ACEP Medical Legal Committee have created a peer mentorship program for ACEP members. This program does not take the place of your malpractice attorney. What it does is give emergency physicians a way to feel less alone in their journey and talk with another emergency physician who has experience with the medical malpractice system. By filling out a request form, ACEP members will be put in touch with a member of the Medical Legal Committee who will act as a peer mentor. What can a peer mentor do? They can listen and offer guidance on the malpractice process, insight into the timelines and the important steps of a malpractice suit and share experiences with real life situations that we have encountered to help guide you. What this program cannot do is provide specific suggestions for your case because that would entail you sharing specific details with the team that would not be protected from discovery.