In this episode, Iain and Simon catch up on the papers, posts, and conversations that have been sitting with us since the start of the year. Some are familiar. Some are uncomfortable. All of them feel relevant on shift.

We start with the RSI trial — ketamine versus etomidate. A study that generated a lot of noise, and perhaps more certainty than it deserved.

We move through trauma team leadership. Not as a checklist, but as a set of decisions made under pressure — when to call a Code Red, how to structure a handover, and what it means to lead a team that hasn’t worked together before.

There’s a discussion about trauma units. Not the big centres. The places where most patients go. Fewer resources. Different pressures. The same expectations.

We talk about spinal cord injury and blood pressure targets. Numbers are useful. But they’re still just numbers.

And then corridor care. Not a new problem. But one we may have started to accept in ways that should make us uneasy.

We discuss:

• What the RSI trial actually showed — and what it didn’t • Why secondary outcomes should make you pause, not pivot practice • How and when to activate a massive haemorrhage protocol • Why early senior decision-making matters more than perfect diagnosis • What good trauma handover looks like — and why it often doesn’t happen • How trauma teams function differently in trauma units • The limits of blood pressure targets in spinal cord injury • Why corridor care is not just operational — but ethical

This is not a guideline episode. It’s a conversation about practice. About judgement. About the small decisions that shape outcomes long before the data catches up.

If you’re listening after a shift, you’ll recognise most of it.

If podcasts are part of how you learn, you can log your listening, reflect, and build CPD through MedPod Learn. It works across podcasts, not just this one.

As always, thanks for listening.

these ideas are tested in practice.

Learning from podcasts?

If podcasts form part of your CPD, you can log your listening time across all podcasts on MedPod Learn — not just St Emlyn’s — and generate structured reflection. The app is free to download, includes a one-month free trial, and offers globally adjusted pricing.

Ep 291 - January 2026 Round-Up: RSI Trial, Trauma Leadership, and the Reality of Corridor Care

The St.Emlyn’s Podcast