Ep 290 - Shock with Rich Carden at Trauma 2030

Shock is one of the most used words in emergency medicine. It’s also one of the most misunderstood. In this episode, recorded at Trauma 2030 at the Royal College of Surgeons, I sit down with one of St Emlyn's own, Rich Carden — former emergency physician, now intensive care trainee and PhD graduate in trauma sciences — to explore what shock actually means beyond the blood pressure reading. We discuss: • Why shock is fundamentally about oxygen delivery and utilisation at a cellular level • The difference between pressure and perfusion • The concept of the “dose” of shock — magnitude and duration • Why haemorrhage may only be the first phase • How trauma patients transition between haemorrhagic, inflammatory, vasoplegic and septic states • The glycocalyx — and why losing it matters • The risks of early vasopressors in an empty system • Why doing the basics exceptionally well remains our best intervention This is not a protocol episode. It’s a physiology conversation. A systems conversation. A reminder that restoring a number is not the same as restoring oxygen to mitochondria. If you’re interested in pre-hospital and trauma systems thinking, do take a look at Tactical Trauma — spaces where 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. Trauma 2030 TRAUMA 2030 united experts and innovators to shape the future of trauma care. Over two days, it explored breakthroughs in science, systems, and frontline practice, fostering collaboration across disciplines. The symposium aimed to inspire research, inform policy, and build a bold roadmap for trauma care worldwide. As always, thanks for listening.

You can listen to Ep 290 - Shock with Rich Carden at Trauma 2030 online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Ep 290 - Shock with Rich Carden at Trauma 2030 is an episode from The St.Emlyn's virtual hospital podcast by St Emlyn’s Blog and Podcast.

This episode is 18:29 long.

This episode was published on Apr 11, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from The St.Emlyn's virtual hospital podcast when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.