Septic Shock from Community-Acquired Pneumonia
A branching clinical case simulation for a patient presenting with fever, productive cough, and worsening breathlessness for 3 days. Take a history, examine, investigate, diagnose and treat while the patient responds to every decision, then see the score by clinical domain with the reasoning for each mark.
Year 3medium20 min6 stages
- Patient
- 70 years, male
- Presenting complaint
- Fever, productive cough, and worsening breathlessness for 3 days
- Decision stages
- History, Examination, Investigations, Diagnosis, Treatment, Monitoring
The presentation
A 70-year-old man, Robert Hall, is brought to the emergency department by his daughter. He has a 3-day history of productive cough, fevers, and increasing shortness of breath. Over the past 12 hours, he has become more confused and difficult to rouse. His daughter is anxious and provides a history. You are the Year 3 medical student on the respiratory rotation. The nurse hands you the observation chart and asks you to assess him.
What this case teaches
- Recognize the clinical features of septic shock.
- Perform focused history and examination to identify pneumonia severity.
- Interpret initial investigations in the context of sepsis.
- Apply early management principles: antibiotics, fluids, vasopressors.
- Monitor response to therapy and adjust care accordingly.
How the case unfolds
- 1History TakingHistory
- 2Focused Physical ExaminationExamination
- 3Initial InvestigationsInvestigations
- 4Diagnosis and SeverityDiagnosis
- 5Immediate ManagementTreatment
- 6Reassess and MonitorMonitoring
The decisions available at each stage, and what each one costs or earns, appear when you run the case.
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A free account opens the simulator: the patient's observations move with your decisions, and every choice is scored and explained.
Taught in
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Educational content for students and clinicians in training. It does not replace professional judgement, local protocols or current prescribing information.