ABSTRACT
You have been dispatched to a 3-year-old child with a rash and pyrexia and according to the caller ‘it could be meningitis’. Upon arrival you are faced with the child sitting on the floor of the lounge, playing with toys and a worried-looking mother starting to give you some information as you enter the house. While this is happening you gain an initial impression by using the paediatric assessment triangle (PAT), which evaluates a child’s overall medical status in a non-invasive manner (see below).
