PRACTICAL PROBLEMSSPECIALTY FEATURE
How to work in…
emergency medicine
Dr Monica Lalanda, staff grade in emergency
medicine, asks if you’ve got what it takes to
succeed in this thriving specialty
What is emergency
all its usual activity and show commitment to the Part A of the membership
medicine? adrenaline, to a ward-style specialty by completing examination of the College
environment, where patients a taster week in an ED, of Emergency Medicine
Emergency medicine is a stay for up to 48 hours becoming an advanced life (MCEM). If successful
young, challenging, dynamic under the sole care of the support provider (ALS) or during this year, trainees
and exciting specialty that emergency physicians. This getting a relevant audit done. will need to achieve the
is constantly evolving. allows further investigation, Having an interest in EM is competencies required to
Curiously it is one of the few treatment and support of not enough; you will have to care for children and patients
that has changed its name patients with a temporary demonstrate it! involved in trauma, by
several times to adjust to condition, such as chest Once a specialty training taking appropriate posts.
the nature of the work, from pain, head injury, an asthma programme has been Once completed,
casualty to accident and attack or an overdose.
emergency medicine, and Most departments also
now to its current name - have separate facilities to
emergency medicine. deal with children, which have
Emergency physicians specialised staff to assist
Working in an emergency
(EPs) are responsible for the EPs, such as registered
assessing, resuscitating children’s nurses, nursery
department (ED) means
and stabilising patients with nurses and play specialists.
serious illnesses and injuries Working in an emergency
you are at the centre of the
before they hand them over department (ED) means
to the appropriate specialists you are at the centre of
emergency pathway and the
at the hospital for definitive the emergency pathway
management. They are also and the gatekeeper of the
gatekeeper of the hospital
responsible for assessing, hospital. The specialty
treating and discharging has developed a through
patients who attend with curriculum and had a number
less serious but urgent of specific examinations one
conditions; who are then sent has to pass to work in it. secured, the first two years trainees will move on to
back to the care of their GP. (CT1 and CT2), which the last three years of their
In recent years the role
Training
are part of the acute care training or specialty training
of EPs has expanded, common stem, will be taken (ST4, 5 and 6). These are
allowing them to manage Training begins with the up with emergency medicine designed to allow trainees
certain pathologies for longer obligatory foundation years. and acute medicine, to gain additional clinical
periods, based on adjacent It is ideal to get a post in EM, followed by anaesthetics and competences and skills
wards often called Clinical but they are very popular intensive care medicine. in academic EM, critical
Decision Units or Observation and therefore difficult to To enter the third year of appraisal and management.
Wards. These extend get. If a candidate does not core specialty training (CT3) Part B and C of the
beyond the shop floor, with get one, they will have to trainees will have to pass membership examination are
10 NEW DOCTOR | VOLUME 3 - ISSUE 1 | 2010 www.mps.org.uk
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16