One thing you'll never hear in the emergency department is the sound of silence. And if the hubbub should start to lower, woe betide the ED staffer who dares to say, "it's looking quiet tonight." But should we really be so concerned? A paper in this episode's roundup takes a look at superstition versus science. Staffing concerns is another ever-present topic when it comes to the ED, and Rick and Sarah share an insightful evaluation of the time savings potentially afforded by voice recognizing "AI scribes". The numbers show some serious benefits, but do they really work? The same question can be asked of the X-ray assessment tools that are rolling out in emergency departments across the world. Rick and Sarah take a look at a study detailing their affect on correct diagnoses. There's also also a case-based paper discussing practices for evaluating IUD-related issues using ultrasound.

This is the final issue with Prof. Ellen Weber serving as the Editor-in-Chief of the Emergency Medicine Journal. Ellen's tenure has been a long and successful one, and everyone in the podcast team wishes her the best in retirement from the post.

Read the highlights: December 2025 primary survey

• Passing the torch
• SONO case series: transabdominal pelvic point-of-care ultrasound of intrauterine devices in the emergency department
• Impact of ‘the Q word’ on hospital speciality activity levels: a narrative systematic review
• Observational service evaluation of voice recognition technology in the emergency department: association with electronic note-writing efficiency
• Evaluating the impact of AI assistance on decision-making in emergency doctors interpreting chest X-rays: a multi-reader multi-case study

The EMJ podcast is hosted by:

Prof. Richard Body, EMJ Deputy Editor, University of Manchester, UK (@richardbody)
Dr. Sarah Edwards, EMJ Senior Associate Editor and Social Media Editor, Royal Derby Hospital, UK (@drsarahedwards)

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